The cause of Chagas disease is the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, which is transmitted to humans from a bite from an insect known as the triatomine bug. These insects can become infected by T. cruzi when they ingest blood from an animal already infected with the parasite.
This video was produced by Dirceu Esdras Teixeira, Marlene Benchimol, Wanderley de Souza and Paul Crepaldi on August 30, 2012.