Spectrum

Dr. Mario Grijalva is a molecular cell biologist who has focused his career on helping to eradicate Chagas disease – especially in South America. This bug, the Trypanosoma Cruzi parasite, exists only within certain parts of Latin America, and has caused havoc in most countries in the region. The parasites causing Chagas can be transmitted by certain insect bites. The parasites also can be transferred congenitally and through blood transfusions. Most of the people infected do not know of the existence of the parasite for 5 to 20 years. Then they develop defective heart symptoms that can often prove fatal. Professor Mario Grijalva, director of the Tropical Disease Institute at Ohio University, he has spent his lifetime career researching and finding ways to curb the disease. Ecuador, his native land, is a country that exists on the equator on the South American continent. As the name suggests, it is a country straddling the equator on South America's West Coast. It is a tropical country with a diverse l