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BMC Infectious Diseases Oct 2021In Ghana, Balantidium coli (B. coli) has been identified in vegetables and in pigs, although there is a paucity of data regarding human balantidiosis. This study sought...
BACKGROUND
In Ghana, Balantidium coli (B. coli) has been identified in vegetables and in pigs, although there is a paucity of data regarding human balantidiosis. This study sought to assess human B. coli infection in Ghana, factors associated with the infection as well as its association with haematological and biochemical parameters.
METHODS
Two pig rearing communities in the Ga West Municipality, Ghana, were involved in this study. Stool and blood samples were collected from pig farmers and their exposed household members as well as relevant information on potential associated factors. Eosin-saline wet preparation was done on the same day of stool samples were collected while formol ether concentration technique was performed later. Haematological, biochemical parameters and serum electrolytes were determined using Celltac MEK-6500 K, PKL-125 biochemical analyser, and FT-320 electrolyte analyser, respectively.
RESULTS
The overall prevalence of balantidiosis was 10.4 %, significantly higher among farmers (21.7 %) than in exposed household members (5.8 %) (x = 17.8, p = 0.000025). Of the 43 infected individuals, 20.9 % were co-infected with either Entamoeba histolytica, Giardia lamblia, or Schistosoma mansoni. In B. coli infection, mild to moderate anaemia together with a reduction in levels of platelet, albumin and, sodium, chloride, and bicarbonate ions were observed. However, white blood cells were significantly elevated in infected states. Poor farming practices such as free-range systems, improper disposal of pig faeces, lack of use of protective farming clothing, and unavailability of dedicated farming clothing were found to be associated with B. coli infection status. Finally, frequent diarrhea (OR = 12.30, p = 0.006) with occult blood (OR = 25.94, p < 0.0001) were found to be predictors of B. coli infection.
CONCLUSIONS
Human balantidiosis is endemic in Ga West Municipality, Ghana. Individuals living closed to pig rearing communities presenting with frequent diarrhea with occult blood in stool should be screened and treated for balantidiosis to mitigate the clinical consequences of the infection.
Topics: Animals; Balantidiasis; Entamoeba histolytica; Ghana; Humans; Prevalence; Risk Factors; Swine
PubMed: 34627168
DOI: 10.1186/s12879-021-06731-2 -
Parasitology International Dec 2016In order to estimate the diversity, clinical involvement and zoonotic potential of parasites in pigs submitted for diagnosis to the PathoPig project of the Swiss Federal...
In order to estimate the diversity, clinical involvement and zoonotic potential of parasites in pigs submitted for diagnosis to the PathoPig project of the Swiss Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office, faeces (n=125) from suckling piglets (n=39), weaners (n=60) and piglets beginning fattening (n=26) from 74 Swiss farms were examined by 3 coproscopical methods (i.e. sedimentation/zinc chloride-flotation; SAFC and Ziehl-Neelsen staining). Samples microscopically positive for Cryptosporidium were further tested by PCR/sequencing for species assessment. The most frequently detected parasite was Balantidium coli, a facultative pathogenic ciliate with zoonotic potential, in 5.1, 36.7 and 50.0% of suckling, weaners and fatteners and 43.2% of farms; however, no association with disease was observed. Isospora (syn. Cystoisospora) suis infections were detected in 13.3 and 11.1% of suckling piglets with and without diarrhoea, and in 10.0 and 13.3% of weaners and fatteners with diarrhoea, respectively, and were significant associated with emaciation. Cryptosporidium infections were detected in 10.3, 15.0 and 19.2% of sucklings, weaners and fatteners, respectively, and in 18.9% of the farms. Interestingly, two age-related species were identified: C. suis in younger piglets (2 to 6weeks) and C. scrofarum in older ones (6 to 17weeks). None of the pigs infected with C. scrofarum (n=8), but 3 of 4 piglets infected with C. suis (co-infection with I. suis in 2 cases) had diarrhoea. The zoonotic species C. parvum was not detected, nevertheless, sporadic cases of human infection with the porcine-adapted species have been reported. Ascaris suum, Trichuris suis and Strongylida were rarely detected (<4%) in all age categories.
Topics: Animals; Balantidiasis; Balantidium; Cryptosporidiosis; Cryptosporidium; Food Parasitology; Humans; Isospora; Isosporiasis; Swine; Swine Diseases; Zoonoses
PubMed: 27639842
DOI: 10.1016/j.parint.2016.09.005 -
PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 2013Among Oceania's population of 35 million people, the greatest number living in poverty currently live in Papua New Guinea (PNG), Fiji, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands.... (Review)
Review
Among Oceania's population of 35 million people, the greatest number living in poverty currently live in Papua New Guinea (PNG), Fiji, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands. These impoverished populations are at high risk for selected NTDs, including Necator americanus hookworm infection, strongyloidiasis, lymphatic filariasis (LF), balantidiasis, yaws, trachoma, leprosy, and scabies, in addition to outbreaks of dengue and other arboviral infections including Japanese encephalitis virus infection. PNG stands out for having the largest number of cases and highest prevalence for most of these NTDs. However, Australia's Aboriginal population also suffers from a range of significant NTDs. Through the Pacific Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis, enormous strides have been made in eliminating LF in Oceania through programs of mass drug administration (MDA), although LF remains widespread in PNG. There are opportunities to scale up MDA for PNG's major NTDs, which could be accomplished through an integrated package that combines albendazole, ivermectin, diethylcarbamazine, and azithromycin, in a program of national control. Australia's Aboriginal population may benefit from appropriately integrated MDA into primary health care systems. Several emerging viral NTDs remain important threats to the region.
Topics: Bacterial Infections; Communicable Disease Control; Humans; Neglected Diseases; Oceania; Parasitic Diseases; Socioeconomic Factors; Virus Diseases
PubMed: 23383349
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001755 -
Indian Journal of Public Health 2000
Topics: Animals; Balantidiasis; Dog Diseases; Dogs; Drug Therapy, Combination; Humans; India; Phenethylamines; Tetracyclines; Zoonoses
PubMed: 11439858
DOI: No ID Found -
Animals : An Open Access Journal From... Sep 2021is a zoonotic protozoan parasite whose main reservoir is pigs. Recent studies have shown that variant A but not B has zoonotic potential. While infection has been...
is a zoonotic protozoan parasite whose main reservoir is pigs. Recent studies have shown that variant A but not B has zoonotic potential. While infection has been reported in different animals and countries, the prevalence of the zoonotic variant is limited due to a lack of molecular information. Therefore, this study investigated the prevalence of in domestic pigs in Korea and assessed its zoonotic potential. A total of 188 pig fecal samples were collected from slaughterhouses in Korea. was identified by microscopy and molecular methods. was identified in 79 (42.9%) and 174 (94.6%) samples by microscopy and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), respectively. This study also developed a PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method to differentiate variant A from B without sequence analysis. Using this method, 62 (33.7%) and 160 (87.0%) samples were positive for variants A and B, respectively, and 48 (26.1%) samples were co-infected with both variants. Sequence and phylogenetic analyses showed a high genetic diversity of in pigs in Korea. To our knowledge, this is the first study to develop a method to differentiate variants A and B without sequence analysis and to assess the molecular epidemiology of in pigs. Continuous monitoring of zoonotic in pigs should be performed as pigs are the main source of human balantidiasis.
PubMed: 34573625
DOI: 10.3390/ani11092659 -
Tropical Parasitology Jan 2014Balantidium coli is the largest ciliated protozoa infecting humans by the feco-oral transmission from pigs. Large gut is the most common site of involvement....
Balantidium coli is the largest ciliated protozoa infecting humans by the feco-oral transmission from pigs. Large gut is the most common site of involvement. Symptomatology varies from asymptomatic carrier to invasive dysentery. Extra-intestinal infections can occur in liver, lung and urogenital tract. There are very few case reports of urinary balantidiasis. We present a case of urinary balantidiasis in an elderly farmer having diabetes and chronic kidney disease. This case is reported for its rarity and future references.
PubMed: 24754028
DOI: 10.4103/2229-5070.129165 -
Journal of Medical Case Reports May 2020Balantidium coli, a parasitic unicellular ciliate, often causes asymptomatic balantidiasis of the colon, but extraintestinal disease may occur rarely in immunosuppressed...
BACKGROUND
Balantidium coli, a parasitic unicellular ciliate, often causes asymptomatic balantidiasis of the colon, but extraintestinal disease may occur rarely in immunosuppressed individuals. Renal balantidiasis associated with systemic lupus erythematosus has not been reported before.
CASE PRESENTATION
We present a case of a 48-year-old Thai woman who presented with nephrotic syndrome due to systemic lupus erythematosus-related nephritis. Initially, few B. coli cysts were found in urine sediment, but these increased substantially following treatment with prednisolone. She made an uneventful recovery with 10 days of oral tetracycline therapy. No B. coli cysts were found in her stool.
CONCLUSION
The route of infection in our patient was unclear but is likely to have been orofecal. Neither her infection nor its treatment caused a deterioration in her renal function.
Topics: Anti-Bacterial Agents; Balantidiasis; Balantidium; Female; Humans; Immunosuppression Therapy; Lupus Nephritis; Middle Aged; Tetracycline; Urinary Tract Infections
PubMed: 32460876
DOI: 10.1186/s13256-020-02389-7 -
Revista Brasileira de Parasitologia... 2016Balantidium coli is a protozoon that can cause dysentery in humans, pigs and nonhuman primates, with zoonotic potential. In the literature, there is still little... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
Balantidium coli is a protozoon that can cause dysentery in humans, pigs and nonhuman primates, with zoonotic potential. In the literature, there is still little information on the effectiveness of different laboratory techniques for diagnosing this disease. This study compared and evaluated the performance of the Lutz, modified Ritchie, Faust, modified Sheather and direct examination techniques for detecting cysts of this protozoon. Between 2012 and 2014, 1905 fecal samples were collected from captive animals in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Of these, 790 were obtained from the rectum of pigs and 1115 from enclosures occupied by nonhuman primates. B. coli cysts were most evident through direct examination (22.4% of the samples) and the Lutz technique (21%). Fair agreement (Kappa = 0.41; p < 0.05) was observed only between direct examination and Lutz. The flotation techniques (Faust and modified Sheather) did not show good recovery of cysts. A statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) in the frequency of cysts between pigs and nonhuman primates could only be observed through direct examination and the Lutz technique. The most efficient method for diagnosing this parasitosis was seen to an association between direct examination and the spontaneous sedimentation technique.
Topics: Animals; Balantidiasis; Balantidium; Clinical Laboratory Techniques; Cysts; Feces; Parasitology; Primates; Swine
PubMed: 27580392
DOI: 10.1590/S1984-29612016044 -
Parasite (Paris, France) 2017In this paper, we present transcriptome data for Balantidium ctenopharyngodoni Chen, 1955 collected from the hindgut of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella). We...
In this paper, we present transcriptome data for Balantidium ctenopharyngodoni Chen, 1955 collected from the hindgut of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella). We evaluated sequence quality and de novo assembled a preliminary transcriptome, including 43.3 megabits and 119,141 transcripts. Then we obtained a final transcriptome, including 17.7 megabits and 35,560 transcripts, by removing contaminative and redundant sequences. Phylogenomic analysis based on a supermatrix with 132 genes comprising 53,873 amino acid residues and phylogenetic analysis based on SSU rDNA of 27 species were carried out herein to reveal the evolutionary relationships among six ciliate groups: Colpodea, Oligohymenophorea, Litostomatea, Spirotrichea, Heterotrichea and Protocruziida. The topologies of both phylogenomic and phylogenetic trees are discussed in this paper. In addition, our results suggest that single-cell sequencing is a sound method of obtaining sufficient omics data for phylogenomic analysis, which is a good choice for uncultivable ciliates. The transcriptome data for Balantidium ctenopharyngodoni are the first omics data within the subclass Trichostomatia, and provide a good basis for ciliate phylogenomic analysis, as well as related omics analysis.
Topics: Algorithms; Animals; Balantidiasis; Balantidium; Base Sequence; Bayes Theorem; Carps; China; DNA, Protozoan; DNA, Ribosomal; Fish Diseases; Fisheries; Gene Expression Profiling; Likelihood Functions; Markov Chains; Monte Carlo Method; Phylogeny; Sequence Alignment; Sequence Analysis, RNA
PubMed: 29134943
DOI: 10.1051/parasite/2017043 -
Experimental Animals Aug 2019There are few effective antimicrobial agents against Balantidium coli infection. The effect of paromomycin sulfate (PS) against B. coli was confirmed in this study of...
There are few effective antimicrobial agents against Balantidium coli infection. The effect of paromomycin sulfate (PS) against B. coli was confirmed in this study of 596 captive cynomolgus monkeys. In several trials, the minimum dose and duration of oral administration of PS were 25 mg/day for 5 + 5 days, with a 2-day withdrawal interval. To facilitate daily PS administration, pumpkin cakes supplemented with PS were made, which not only resulted in precise effects but also increased the efficiency of preparation and administration of PS by the animal care staff. No cysts or trophozoites were detected at 14 or 16 days after the last treatments. There were no obvious differences in blood and biochemical parameters between before and after administration of PS. These results indicate that PS is effective for elimination of B. coli without hematological side effects. These data could contribute to the control of microbiological pathogens during veterinary care and colony management in primate facilities.
Topics: Animals; Antiprotozoal Agents; Balantidiasis; Balantidium; Feces; Female; Macaca fascicularis; Male; Monkey Diseases; Paromomycin
PubMed: 30814394
DOI: 10.1538/expanim.18-0133