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GigaScience Jan 2019Foodborne infections caused by lung flukes of the genus Paragonimus are a significant and widespread public health problem in tropical areas. Approximately 50...
BACKGROUND
Foodborne infections caused by lung flukes of the genus Paragonimus are a significant and widespread public health problem in tropical areas. Approximately 50 Paragonimus species have been reported to infect animals and humans, but Paragonimus westermani is responsible for the bulk of human disease. Despite their medical and economic importance, no genome sequence for any Paragonimus species is available.
RESULTS
We sequenced and assembled the genome of P. westermani, which is among the largest of the known pathogen genomes with an estimated size of 1.1 Gb. A 922.8 Mb genome assembly was generated from Illumina and Pacific Biosciences (PacBio) sequence data, covering 84% of the estimated genome size. The genome has a high proportion (45%) of repeat-derived DNA, particularly of the long interspersed element and long terminal repeat subtypes, and the expansion of these elements may explain some of the large size. We predicted 12,852 protein coding genes, showing a high level of conservation with related trematode species. The majority of proteins (80%) had homologs in the human liver fluke Opisthorchis viverrini, with an average sequence identity of 64.1%. Assembly of the P. westermani mitochondrial genome from long PacBio reads resulted in a single high-quality circularized 20.6 kb contig. The contig harbored a 6.9 kb region of non-coding repetitive DNA comprised of three distinct repeat units. Our results suggest that the region is highly polymorphic in P. westermani, possibly even within single worm isolates.
CONCLUSIONS
The generated assembly represents the first Paragonimus genome sequence and will facilitate future molecular studies of this important, but neglected, parasite group.
Topics: Animals; Genome Size; Genome, Helminth; Genome, Mitochondrial; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; Molecular Sequence Annotation; Paragonimus westermani; Phylogeny; Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; Whole Genome Sequencing
PubMed: 30520948
DOI: 10.1093/gigascience/giy146 -
Lung India : Official Organ of Indian... 2015Paragonimiasis is a food-borne parasitic zoonosis caused by the genus Paragonimus. Fresh water snails, crabs, and crayfish are the first and second intermediate hosts,...
Paragonimiasis is a food-borne parasitic zoonosis caused by the genus Paragonimus. Fresh water snails, crabs, and crayfish are the first and second intermediate hosts, respectively. Humans acquire this infection by ingesting uncooked/undercooked crustaceans. Laboratory diagnosis of Paragonimiasis is done by demonstration of ova in the sputum/feces/pleural fluid or by serology. A case of pulmonary Paragonimiasis is presented herewith; the patient having been diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis earlier. The aim of this presentation is to highlight this entity so that it is considered in the differential diagnosis in a case of hemoptysis.
PubMed: 25983414
DOI: 10.4103/0970-2113.156248 -
Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy :... Mar 2019We report a case of Paragonimus westermani infection simultaneously affecting two separate organs that presented as both a pulmonary cavity and adrenal mass in an...
We report a case of Paragonimus westermani infection simultaneously affecting two separate organs that presented as both a pulmonary cavity and adrenal mass in an immunocompromised host. A 65-year-old male with a previous kidney transplant visited our clinic because of hemoptysis. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed a pulmonary cavity and right adrenal gland mass. The Aspergillus antigen titer in bronchial lavage fluid was elevated and showed positive conversion. It was necessary to differentiate lung cancer with adrenal gland metastasis from a fungal infection with an adrenal gland adenoma. Positron emission tomography CT suggested benign disease, and it was misdiagnosed as pulmonary aspergillosis based on the elevated Aspergillus antigen titer in the bronchial lavage fluid. Owing to the adverse effects of anti-fungal treatment, the patient underwent wedge resection of the lung and P. westermani was confirmed. A careful history revealed that the patient had eaten raw freshwater crabs 3 years earlier, and a test for serum antibodies to P. westermani was positive. Despite treatment with praziquantel, the adrenal mass persisted on 3-month follow-up CT. A right adrenalectomy was performed and a P. westermani infection was confirmed.
Topics: Adrenal Gland Diseases; Adrenal Glands; Aged; Animals; Diagnosis, Differential; Foodborne Diseases; Humans; Lung; Lung Diseases; Male; Paragonimiasis; Paragonimus westermani; Radiography, Thoracic; Tomography, X-Ray Computed
PubMed: 30213500
DOI: 10.1016/j.jiac.2018.08.005 -
Radiology May 1946
Topics: Animals; Paragonimus; Paragonimus westermani
PubMed: 20983083
DOI: 10.1148/46.5.511 -
Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy :... Dec 2016Herein, we report a case of Paragonimus westermani infection, which required differentiation from recurrent lung cancer. A 66-year old Japanese man with a history of...
Herein, we report a case of Paragonimus westermani infection, which required differentiation from recurrent lung cancer. A 66-year old Japanese man with a history of lung cancer who had undergone a lobectomy was referred to our clinic for treatment of cough, sputum, dyspnea, and a right pulmonary nodule. He had previously eaten seafood he visited China. P. westermani infection was confirmed by the presence of antibody against P. westermani antigen in the patient's serum and eggs in his sputum. Eventually, molecular identification by PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis and sequencing confirmed that the patient was infected with triploid forms of P. westermani.
Topics: Aged; Animals; Humans; Lung Neoplasms; Male; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; Paragonimiasis; Paragonimus westermani; Sputum
PubMed: 27498617
DOI: 10.1016/j.jiac.2016.07.002 -
Parasites & Vectors Sep 2016Paragonimiasis is an important and widespread neglected tropical disease. Fifteen Paragonimus species are human pathogens, but two of these, Paragonimus westermani and...
BACKGROUND
Paragonimiasis is an important and widespread neglected tropical disease. Fifteen Paragonimus species are human pathogens, but two of these, Paragonimus westermani and P. skrjabini, are responsible for the bulk of human disease. Despite their medical and economic significance, there is limited information on the gene content and expression of Paragonimus lung flukes.
RESULTS
The transcriptomes of adult P. westermani and P. skrjabini were studied with deep sequencing technology. Approximately 30 million reads per species were assembled into 21,586 and 25,825 unigenes for P. westermani and P. skrjabini, respectively. Many unigenes showed homology with sequences from other food-borne trematodes, but 1,217 high-confidence Paragonimus-specific unigenes were identified. Analyses indicated that both species have the potential for aerobic and anaerobic metabolism but not de novo fatty acid biosynthesis and that they may interact with host signaling pathways. Some 12,432 P. westermani and P. skrjabini unigenes showed a clear correspondence in bi-directional sequence similarity matches. The expression of shared unigenes was mostly well correlated, but differentially expressed unigenes were identified and shown to be enriched for functions related to proteolysis for P. westermani and microtubule based motility for P. skrjabini.
CONCLUSIONS
The assembled transcriptomes of P. westermani and P. skrjabini, inferred proteins, and extensive functional annotations generated for this project (including identified primary sequence similarities to various species, protein domains, biological pathways, predicted proteases, molecular mimics and secreted proteins, etc.) represent a valuable resource for hypothesis driven research on these medically and economically important species.
Topics: Animals; Biological Evolution; Brachyura; Gene Expression Regulation; Genetic Variation; Helminth Proteins; Host-Parasite Interactions; Metacercariae; Paragonimus; RNA, Helminth; Transcriptome
PubMed: 27619014
DOI: 10.1186/s13071-016-1785-x -
International Journal For Parasitology Apr 2000There have been few investigations of genomes of Paragonimus westermani and related species. Most studies have focussed on questions such as the identities of species... (Review)
Review
There have been few investigations of genomes of Paragonimus westermani and related species. Most studies have focussed on questions such as the identities of species and relationships among them, origins and relationships of strains with different ploidy states, and the characterisation of genes producing immunologically significant proteins. In the context of these questions, work on the karyotypes, nuclear and mitochondrial genomes is reviewed.
Topics: Animals; Genome; Molecular Sequence Data; Paragonimus; RNA, Protozoan; RNA, Ribosomal
PubMed: 10731565
DOI: 10.1016/s0020-7519(99)00187-3 -
Acta Tropica Dec 2019Paragonimus westermani (P. westermani) is widely spread in Asian countries and is one of the most important causative agents for lung fluke diseases. The prevention and...
Paragonimus westermani (P. westermani) is widely spread in Asian countries and is one of the most important causative agents for lung fluke diseases. The prevention and control of Paragonimiaisis mainly depends on the accurate diagnosis and effective treatment. In this study, we developed a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay targeted to a portion of the Ty3/gypsy-like LTR retrotransposon (Rn1) sequence coupled with a lateral flow dipstick (LFD) for the rapid detection of P. westermani-specific amplicons. The positive LAMP products were biotin-labeled and hybridized with a fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled probe which could be visually detected by LFD. No cross-reaction were observed with other parasitic pathogens including Trichinella spiralis, Anisakis simplex, Schistosoma japonicum and Gnathostoma spinigerum, but this LAMP assay could not distinguish P. westermani with Paragonimus skrjabini and Paragonimus heterotremus. The detection limit of the LAMP assay for P. westermani was 2.7 fg/µL, while that of PCR method was 27 fg/µL. LAMP method was applied to detect P. westermani genomic DNA in blood samples form experimental infected dogs, and results showed the parasite was detectable as early as week 2. LAMP-LFD assay applicability was successfully tested in dog blood samples collected from five cities (Wenzhou, Hangzhou, Huzhou, Jiaxing and Shaoxing) in Zhejiang province. In summary, the established LAMP-LFD assay targeted to the Rn1 sequence is a rapid and convenient method for specific detection of P. westermani.
Topics: Animals; China; DNA Primers; Dogs; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques; Paragonimiasis; Paragonimus westermani; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Sensitivity and Specificity
PubMed: 31542373
DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2019.105185 -
Parasitology International Apr 2021We encountered an outbreak of paragonimiasis among Cambodian technical intern trainees (TITs) at a food-processing factory in Fukuoka, Japan. The patients were...
We encountered an outbreak of paragonimiasis among Cambodian technical intern trainees (TITs) at a food-processing factory in Fukuoka, Japan. The patients were 20-28 years old, seven females and two males, who had been in Japan for one to four years. All of them had consumed raw or undercooked Japanese mitten crab they purchased at a local grocery store near their training place. CT images showed multiple lesions not only in the lungs but in the extrapulmonary organs as well, such as subcutaneous tissues, abdominal muscles, and mesentery, in most of the patients. Their medical records indicated that all of them acquired infection in Japan, not in Cambodia. Diagnosis was made serologically and the patients were treated with praziquantel successfully. Foreign workers and TITs are increasing in Japan so rapidly, that food borne-infections, including paragonimiasis, should be considered in people from developing countries who have exotic dietary habits.
Topics: Adult; Animals; Cambodia; Disease Outbreaks; Female; Humans; Japan; Lung; Lung Diseases, Parasitic; Male; Paragonimiasis; Paragonimus westermani; Young Adult
PubMed: 33388385
DOI: 10.1016/j.parint.2020.102279 -
Zhongguo Xue Xi Chong Bing Fang Zhi Za... Jan 2020To compare the complete mitochondrial genome sequences of two phenotypes of isolated from Fujian Province with different sizes of metacercariae, and perform a...
OBJECTIVE
To compare the complete mitochondrial genome sequences of two phenotypes of isolated from Fujian Province with different sizes of metacercariae, and perform a phylogenetic analysis of various geographical isolates of from Asia, so as to identify the possible genetic characteristics associated with the phenotypes.
METHODS
metacercariae with different sizes (large metacercariae, 380-420 μm in diameter; small metacercariae, 320-340 μm) isolated from freshwater crabs were used to infect dogs, and the eggs and adult worms of were collected from the dog stool samples and lung tissues. Then, the egg size and morphology were compared. In addition, genomic DNA was extracted from the adult worms of the two phenotypes of and used for the PCR amplification to yield the complete mitochondrial genome sequence. Sequence structure and phylogenetic analyses were performed based on the complete mitochondrial genome of .
RESULTS
Following infection with large and small metacercariae, the adult worms recovered from the dog lung had a thick body, and had oral and ventral suckers. The ventral sucker was located slightly in front of the midline of the body, and testes, ovary and vitelline gland were seen in the adult worms. Following fixation, the adults appeared oval, with an approximately 1.7∶1 of the length-width ratio. The length and width of the eggs isolated from the fecal samples of dogs infected with large and small metacercariae varied significantly, and the large metacercariae produced bigger eggs than the smaller metacercariae. Based on the morphological features of adults and eggs and the sequences, both phenotypes were identified as . The complete mitochondrial genome sequence analysis of adults showed almost consistent sequences in the protein-coding region of the mitochondrial genome of adult worms derived from large and small metacercariae, with a major variation seen in the former non-coding region. Sliding window analysis revealed the most polymorphic region within the gene across the mitochondrial genome from various geographical isolates of , and phylogenetic analysis showed that both phenotypes were clustered into the Chinese branch of , which was close to the Japanese branch and distinct from the South/Southeast Asian branch.
CONCLUSIONS
The genetic distance between the phenotypes of isolated from Fujian Province is near at a mitochondrial genome level, with no remarkable genetic differentiation seen; however, the mutation and structural changes in the non-coding region may result in the phenotypic variations. In addition, there is a distinct variation of the evolutionary rate in the mitochondrial coding genes, suggesting the selection of appropriate molecular markers during the phylogenic researches.
Topics: Animals; Asia; China; DNA, Helminth; Dogs; Female; Genome, Mitochondrial; Paragonimus westermani; Phylogeny
PubMed: 32185925
DOI: 10.16250/j.32.1374.2019238