Blastocystis in animal handlers

Salim, Hilmi; Kumar, G Suresh; Subramaniam, Vellayan A L; Mak, Joon Wah; Anuar, A. Khairul; Init, I.; Vennila, G; Saminathan, R; Ramakrishnan, Kumaran

doi:10.1007/s004360050677

Cited by 101 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…21 The individuals who are exposed to animals were shown to have significantly higher rates of blastocystosis. 11,42 However, similar to our findings, a study found no statistical significance between the prevalence of blastocystosis and contact with animals. 15 Previous studies indicated that factors associated with living in the rural regions significantly influence the prevalence of Blastocystis and other parasitic infections.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…Numbers of female and male participants were 143 (62.2%) and 87 (37.8%), respectively. Distribution of the individuals according to the age groups was nine (3.9%) for age 7-19, 76 (33%) for age 20-39, 90 (39.1%) for age [40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59], and 55 (24%) for age 60 and above. A minority of the participants (24%) were university graduates; however, most of the individuals (91.7%) had middle or high socioeconomic status.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Epidemiology and Prevalence of Blastocystis spp. in North Cyprus

Seyer¹,

Karasartova²,

Ruh³

et al. 2017

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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Abstract. This study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of Blastocystis spp. and its subtypes (STs) in North Cyprus; and to evaluate the presence of this parasite and its STs with respect to demographic, socioeconomic, and epidemiological factors, as well as gastrointestinal symptoms. Stool samples were collected from 230 volunteers. Each participant also filled out a questionnaire. The samples were examined microscopically by native-Lugol and trichrome methods and further tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing. Prevalence of Blastocystis spp. infection was found to be 10.5%, 10.5%, and 27.8%, by direct microscopy, trichrome method, and PCR, respectively. No other parasites were detected in the specimens except Giardia spp. (n = 2; 0.8%) and Entamoeba coli (n = 1; 0.4%). The most common Blastocystis STs were ST3 (20; 31.2%), ST2 (18; 28.2%), ST1 (8; 12.5%), and ST4 (7; 11%); whereas other STs were identified as ST6 (3; 4.7%), ST7 (2; 3.2%), and non-ST (6; 9.4%). Presence of Blastocystis spp. and its STs was not significantly related to any of the demographic, socioeconomic, and epidemiological factors. Furthermore, no significant association of Blastocystis spp. and its STs with gastrointestinal symptoms was found. This study is the first investigation of the epidemiology of Blastocystis spp. in North Cyprus. Distribution of Blastocystis spp. and its STs among demographic, socioeconomic, and epidemiological factors showed complete homogeneity. Presence of the parasite and its STs was not significantly related with the gastrointestinal symptoms among symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals. These findings suggest that Blastocystis spp. may be part of the intestinal flora in humans.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Epidemiology and Prevalence of Blastocystis spp. in North Cyprus

Seyer¹,

Karasartova²,

Ruh³

et al. 2017

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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“…This is supported by several studies (14,31,32) confirming that animal and food handlers are more likely to be infected. Recently, diagnostic PCR using known sequenced-tagged site (STS)-specific primer sets was developed to distinguish and classify Blastocystis populations into seven different subtypes based on genomic similarity (47,48,50).…”

supporting

confidence: 68%

Molecular Phylogenies of Blastocystis Isolates from Different Hosts: Implications for Genetic Diversity, Identification of Species, and Zoonosis

et al. 2005

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Small-subunit (SSU) rRNA gene sequences were obtained by PCR from 12 Blastocystis isolates from humans, rats, and reptiles for which elongation factor 1␣ (EF-1␣) gene sequences are already available. These new sequences were analyzed by the Bayesian method in a broad phylogeny including, for the first time, all Blastocystis sequences available in the databases. Phylogenetic trees identified seven well-resolved groups plus several discrete lineages that could represent newly defined clades. Comparative analysis of SSU rRNA-and EF-1␣-based trees obtained by maximum-likelihood methods from a restricted sampling (13 isolates) revealed overall agreement between the two phylogenies. In spite of their morphological similarity, sequence divergence among Blastocystis isolates reflected considerable genetic diversity that could be correlated with the existence of potentially >12 different species within the genus. Based on this analysis and previous PCR-based genotype classification data, six of these major groups might consist of Blastocystis isolates from both humans and other animal hosts, confirming the low host specificity of Blastocystis. Our results also strongly suggest the existence of numerous zoonotic isolates with frequent animal-to-human and human-to-animal transmissions and of a large potential reservoir in animals for infections in humans.

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“…In previous studies using Jones' medium supplemented with 10 % horse serum (Salim et al 1999 ;Leelayoova et al 2002 ;Suresh and Smith, 2004 ;Termmathurapoj et al 2004 ;Yakoob et al 2004 ;Yoshikawa et al 2004 c), only human faecal samples were screened for Blastocystis. However, several different types of media to cultivate Blastocystis have been reported, and it has been suggested that the usefulness of cultivation may depend on the reagents and protocols employed (Zaman and Khan, 1994 ;Leelayoova et al 2002).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Direct characterization of Blastocystis from faeces by PCR and evidence of zoonotic potential

et al. 2006

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In vitro propagation followed by PCR, and a PCR-based method capable of the direct detection of Blastocystis in faeces were utilized to detect Blastocystis from various hosts in Australia, including primates and their handlers from the Perth Zoo. In addition, Blastocystis isolates from dogs and humans living in a localized endemic community in Thailand were also characterized genetically. PCR-based detection directly from faeces was shown to be more sensitive compared with in vitro culture for the detection of Blastocystis. Moreover, phylogenetic analysis of Blastocystis isolates amplified utilizing in vitro techniques prior to PCR revealed that this method favoured the preferential amplification of Blastocystis subtype 5 over subtype 1. This study is the first to provide molecular-based evidence supporting the zoonotic potential of Blastocystis in dogs, possums and primates in a natural setting.

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Blastocystis in animal handlers

Cited by 101 publications

References 6 publications

Epidemiology and Prevalence of Blastocystis spp. in North Cyprus

Epidemiology and Prevalence of Blastocystis spp. in North Cyprus

Molecular Phylogenies of Blastocystis Isolates from Different Hosts: Implications for Genetic Diversity, Identification of Species, and Zoonosis

Direct characterization of Blastocystis from faeces by PCR and evidence of zoonotic potential

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