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The Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology 1998Trachipleistophora anthropophthera n. sp., was found at autopsy in the brain of one and in the brain, kidneys, pancreas, thyroid, parathyroid, heart, liver, spleen,...
Microsporidia of the genus Trachipleistophora--causative agents of human microsporidiosis: description of Trachipleistophora anthropophthera n. sp. (Protozoa: Microsporidia).
Trachipleistophora anthropophthera n. sp., was found at autopsy in the brain of one and in the brain, kidneys, pancreas, thyroid, parathyroid, heart, liver, spleen, lymph nodes, and bone marrow of a second patient with AIDS. The parasite is similar to the recently described T. hominis Hollister, Canning, Weidner, Field, Kench and Marriott, 1996, in having isolated nuclei, meronts with a thick layer of electron dense material on the outer face of their plasmalemma and sporogony during which spores are formed inside a thick-walled sporophorous vesicle. In contrast to T. hominis, this species is dimorphic as it forms two kinds of sporophorous vesicles and spores: Type I--round to oval polysporous sporophorous vesicle, 7-10 microns in size, usually with eight spores (3.7 x 2.0 microns), thick endospores, subterminal anchoring disc and anisofilar polar filaments forming seven thicker and two thinner terminal coils. This type of sporophorous vesicle is associated with 25-30 nm filaments extending into the host cell cytoplasm. Type II--smaller, bisporous sporophorous vesicle (4-5 x 2.2-2.5 microns) with two, nearly round, thin-walled spores, 2.2-2.5 x 1.8-2.0 microns in size, having 4-5 isofilar coils. No outside filamentous elements are associated with the bisporous sporophorous vesicle. Both types of sporophorous vesicles were common in the infected brain tissue and could be found within the same cell. The newly described species, together with T. hominis and previously reported Pleistophora-like parasites from human muscle, likely represent a group of closely related human microsporidia.
Topics: AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections; Animals; Brain; Heart; Humans; Kidney; Microscopy, Electron; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Microsporida; Microsporidiosis; Spores
PubMed: 9627987
DOI: 10.1111/j.1550-7408.1998.tb04536.x -
The Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology 2000The fatty acid composition of four microsporidian species (Glugea atherinae, Spraguea lophii, Glugea americanus, and Pleistophora mirandellae) and their host fishes has... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
The fatty acid composition of four microsporidian species (Glugea atherinae, Spraguea lophii, Glugea americanus, and Pleistophora mirandellae) and their host fishes has been determined using gas chromatography. Twenty-four fatty acids were identified with differences in relative abundance of fatty acids among the four parasites. Certain even-saturated fatty acids were found in a very high proportion: palmitic acid (16:0) represented one-third of total fatty acids in Pleistophora mirandellae. The level of docosahexaenoic acid (22:6omega3) attained 26-28% in Glugea atherinae, Spraguea lophii, and Glugea americanus, but only 8-9% in P. mirandellae. With respect to fatty acid compositions of host organs, some significant differences were evident between marine and freshwater fishes. Palmitic acid was prevalent in the marine fishes, Atherinae boyeri and Lophius piscatorius, and oleic acid (18:1omega9) in the freshwater fish Leuciscus cephalus. The proportion of docosahexaenoic acid in marine fishes was two or three times as great as in freshwater fish Leuciscus. The high polyunsaturated fatty acid content in both parasites and host fishes may be related to the scavenging of these fatty acids by the parasites rather than a microsporidia-specific fatty acid biosynthesis pathway.
Topics: Animals; Chromatography, Gas; Fatty Acids; Fish Diseases; Fishes; Fresh Water; Kidney; Liver; Microsporida; Microsporidiosis; Seawater; Spores
PubMed: 10651288
DOI: 10.1111/j.1550-7408.2000.tb00002.x -
APMIS : Acta Pathologica,... Nov 1994Microsporidia are primitive mitochondria-lacking spore-forming eukaryotic protozoa that infect a wide variety of animals and also humans. Of the five genera...
Microsporidia are primitive mitochondria-lacking spore-forming eukaryotic protozoa that infect a wide variety of animals and also humans. Of the five genera (Encephalitozoon, Enterocytozoon, Septata, Nosema and Pleistophora) that cause infections in humans, Enterocytozoon bieneusi, Septata intestinalis, and Encephalitozoon hellem are being increasingly identified in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). E. bieneusi causes gastrointestinal disease, S. intestinalis causes gastrointestinal and disseminated disease, and E. hellem causes ocular as well as disseminated disease. We have established in continuous culture a strain of microsporidia isolated from the urine and throat washings of an Italian AIDS patient and identified it as Encephalitozoon hellem, based on its ultrastructural morphology, antigenic pattern, and polymerase chain reaction-amplified small subunit ribosomal RNA. We believe that this is the first time that a strain of microsporidia has been isolated from the throat washings of a patient with microsporidiosis.
Topics: AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections; Adult; Animals; Base Sequence; Cell Line; Chlorocebus aethiops; DNA Primers; Encephalitozoon; Encephalitozoonosis; Fluorescent Antibody Technique; Humans; Immunoblotting; Italy; Microscopy, Electron; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Molecular Sequence Data; Pharynx; RNA, Ribosomal; Vero Cells
PubMed: 7833001
DOI: No ID Found -
Parasitology Jan 1996Continuous culture was achieved in several cell lines of a microsporidium obtained from the skeletal muscle of an AIDS patient. Development in COS-1 and RK13 cells was...
Continuous culture was achieved in several cell lines of a microsporidium obtained from the skeletal muscle of an AIDS patient. Development in COS-1 and RK13 cells was prolific. Spores from the original biopsy were also inoculated into athymic mice by i.m. and i.p. routes. Infection was found in several organs as well as in skeletal muscle after a few weeks. All stages were surrounded by an electron-dense surface coat. Meronts had 2-4 nuclei and divided by binary fission. In sporogony the surface coat became separated from the plasma membrane to form a sporophorous vesicle, within which division into sporoblasts was effected by repeated binary fissions. The number of sporoblasts (and later spores) within the sporophorous vesicles varied from 2 to > 32 and the sizes of the vesicles varied, according to the number of spores contained therein, from 5 microns diameter to 14.0 x 11.0 microns. Spores measured 4.0 x 2.4 microns and had a prominent posterior vacuole. The parasite differs from the genus Pleistophora in that it does not form multinucleate sporogonial plasmodia and that the sporophorous vesicle enlarges during sporogony and its wall is not a multilayered structure. It is proposed to place it in a new genus and species Trachipleistophora hominis n.g., n.sp.
Topics: AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections; Animals; Cell Line; Humans; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mice, Nude; Microsporida; Microsporidiosis; Muscles
PubMed: 8587798
DOI: 10.1017/s0031182000065185 -
Journal of Food Protection Feb 2002The occurrence of human pathogenic parasites in irrigation waters used for food crops traditionally eaten raw was investigated. The polymerase chain reaction was used to...
The occurrence of human pathogenic parasites in irrigation waters used for food crops traditionally eaten raw was investigated. The polymerase chain reaction was used to detect human pathogenic microsporidia in irrigation waters from the United States and several Central American countries. In addition, the occurrence of both Cryptosporidium oocysts and Giardia cysts was determined by immunofluorescent techniques. Twenty-eight percent of the irrigation water samples tested positive for microsporidia, 60% tested positive for Giardia cysts, and 36% tested positive for Cryptosporidium oocysts. The average concentrations in samples from Central America containing Giardia cysts and Cryptosporidium oocysts were 559 cysts and 227 oocysts per 100 liters. In samples from the United States, averages of 25 Giardia cysts per 100 liters and <19 (average detection limit) Cryptosporidium oocysts per 100 liters were detected. Two of the samples that were positive for microsporidia were sequenced, and subsequent database homology comparisons allowed the presumptive identification of two human pathogenic species, Encephalitozoon intestinalis (94% homology) and Pleistophora spp. (89% homology). The presence of human pathogenic parasites in irrigation waters used in the production of crops traditionally consumed raw suggests that there may be a risk of infection to consumers who come in contact with or eat these products.
Topics: Animals; Cryptosporidium; DNA, Protozoan; Food Contamination; Giardia; Microsporidia; Oocytes; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Sequence Homology; Species Specificity; Vegetables; Water
PubMed: 11848571
DOI: 10.4315/0362-028x-65.2.378 -
The Journal of Parasitology Feb 1997A total of 190 deepwater sculpins, Myoxocephalus thompsoni, collected in 1995 from Michigan waters of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron was examined for parasites. Five...
A total of 190 deepwater sculpins, Myoxocephalus thompsoni, collected in 1995 from Michigan waters of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron was examined for parasites. Five parasite species occurred in sculpins from Lake Michigan with Echinorhynchus salmonis being most common. Six parasite species infected sculpins from Lake Huron, with Haplonema sp. the most common. Haplonema sp. is the only gravid helminth species reported from deepwater sculpins. Pleistophora sp. and Trichodina sp. infected sculpins from Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Parasite species richness for sculpins at the 3 locations ranged from 5 to 6; mean values ranged from 1.18 to 1.39 for examined fish. The restricted diet of deepwater sculpin, which may be related to the depth of its habitat, appears to determine its helminth fauna. Deepwater sculpin may be an important transport host for E. salmonis, Cyathocephalus truncatus, and Eubothrium salvelini to lake trout and burbot that commonly feed on them.
Topics: Acanthocephala; Animals; Cestode Infections; Female; Fish Diseases; Fishes; Fresh Water; Great Lakes Region; Helminthiasis; Helminthiasis, Animal; Male; Nematode Infections; Prevalence; Protozoan Infections; Protozoan Infections, Animal; Sex Distribution
PubMed: 9057717
DOI: No ID Found -
Behavioural Processes Nov 2012Recent findings suggest that grouping with conspecifics is part of the behavioural defences developed by amphipod crustaceans to face predation risk by fish. Amphipods...
Recent findings suggest that grouping with conspecifics is part of the behavioural defences developed by amphipod crustaceans to face predation risk by fish. Amphipods commonly serve as intermediate hosts for trophically transmitted parasites. These parasites are known for their ability to alter intermediate host phenotype in a way that promotes predation by definitive hosts, where they reproduce. If aggregation in amphipods dilutes the risk to be preyed on by fish, then it may dilute the probability of transmission for the parasite using fish as definitive hosts. Using experimental infections, we tested whether infection with the fish acanthocephalan Pomphorhynchus laevis alters attraction to conspecifics in the amphipod intermediate host Gammarus pulex. We also measured G. pulex's activity and reaction to light to detect potential links between changes in aggregation and changes in other behaviours. The attraction to conspecifics in the presence of predator cue, a behaviour found in uninfected gammarids, was cancelled by the infection, while phototaxis was reversed and activity unchanged. We found no correlation between the three behaviours in infected amphipods, while activity and aggregation were negatively correlated in uninfected individuals after the detection of predation cue. The physiological causes and the adaptive value of aggregation suppression are discussed in the context of a multidimensional manipulation.
Topics: Amphipoda; Animals; Female; Fishes; Growth; Host-Parasite Interactions; Male; Motor Activity; Odorants; Parasites; Parasitic Diseases, Animal; Photic Stimulation; Pleistophora; Predatory Behavior; Social Behavior
PubMed: 22940109
DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2012.08.002 -
European Journal of Protistology Oct 1989Heterosporis schuberti n.sp. is described from the myocytes of an ornamental fish, Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor (Cichlidae). An apparently identical species was also...
Heterosporis schuberti n.sp. is described from the myocytes of an ornamental fish, Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor (Cichlidae). An apparently identical species was also found in Ancistrus cirrhosus (Loricariidae). Early meronts - uninucleate or plurinucleate - are perhaps responsible for dissemination of the infection throughout the muscle tissue. Later development of the microsporidian takes place in a structure encased with a thick envelope, for which the name sporophorocyst is proposed. At first, it contains merogony stages. Later, sporogony stages appear, too, which eventually prevail until a voluminous sporophorocyst is packed full with sporophorous vesicles with macrospores and rather rare microspores. Pleistophora anguillarumHoshina, 1951 reveals features similar enough to permit its reassignment to the genus HeterosporisSchubert, 1969.
PubMed: 23195872
DOI: 10.1016/S0932-4739(89)80023-9 -
Journal of the American Mosquito... Mar 1987Water from a mosquito larval habitat in Florida was collected periodically for one year. After removing debris and macroscopic organisms, the small particles were...
Water from a mosquito larval habitat in Florida was collected periodically for one year. After removing debris and macroscopic organisms, the small particles were concentrated by continuous flow centrifugation and examined microscopically. Anopheles quadrimaculatus, Culex salinarius and Heliothis zea larvae were exposed to the concentrates. The microsporidia isolated were Nosema, Pleistophora, Telomyxa, Vavraia and Vairimorpha. In addition to these microsporidia, a Helicosporidium (Protozoa), a Metarrhyzium (fungi) and two cytoplasmic polyhedrosis viruses were also isolated.
Topics: Animals; Anopheles; Apicomplexa; Culex; Lepidoptera; Seasons; Spores; Water
PubMed: 3144577
DOI: No ID Found -
Folia Parasitologica 1980Two new species of microsporidia are reported from the Atlantic marine fishes: Pleistophora duodecimae sp. n. from skeletal musculature of the rat-tail, Coryphaenoides...
Two new species of microsporidia are reported from the Atlantic marine fishes: Pleistophora duodecimae sp. n. from skeletal musculature of the rat-tail, Coryphaenoides nasutus Günther and Glugea capverdensis sp. n. from the intestine, mesentery and ovary of the lantern fish, Myctophum punctatum Rafinesque. Formation of secondary xenomas was observed in the latter species. Both species may inflict serious damage upon their hosts.
Topics: Animals; Apicomplexa; Fishes; Marine Biology
PubMed: 6774932
DOI: No ID Found