To investigate the infection status of pigs with Cryptosporidium parvum, 589 fecal samples were collected from pigs raised at farm in Chungcheongbuk-do and Chungcheongnam-do. Of the 589 pig fecal samples, 62 (10.5%) were positive for C. parvum. The area showing the highest positive rate was Dangjin-gun, Chungcheongnam-do (14.0%), and the lowest (0%) Salmi-myon, Chungcheongbuk-do. The positive rate of C. parvum in Judok-eup increased from 12.7% in the winter to 22.1% in the summer. The results of this study suggest that the pigs may be a source of human C. parvum infection.
Animal Husbandry ; Animals ; Cryptosporidiosis/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Cryptosporidium parvum/*isolation & purification ; Feces/parasitology ; Korea/epidemiology ; Parasite Egg Count ; Swine ; Swine Diseases/*epidemiology/*parasitology

Human diphyllobolthriasis is chiefly caused by infection with Diphyllobothrium latum(D. latum) through eating raw or unproperly cooked fish such as salmon, trout or perch. D. latum is worldwidely distributed, but not a common parasite of humans, and its prevalence in Korea is not high. The first worm-proven case of D. latum infection was first reported in 1971 and about 30 cases have been reported in Korea until now. However, with the increasing popularity of eating raw salmon, trout and perch, this tapeworm infection tends to increase in Korea. Most of the patients infected by D. latum have not showed the specific symptoms and only non-specific gastrointestinal symptoms(anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain). We report a case which includes a chain whitish, threadlike tapeworm segments spontaneously discharged in the patients stool. On reviewing the literature, the present case is the first report of D. latum infection by eating cultured salmon. The patient was treated with 600mg single dose of Praziquantel.
Cestoda ; Cestode Infections ; Diarrhea ; Diphyllobothrium* ; Eating ; Humans ; Korea ; Nausea ; Parasites ; Perches ; Praziquantel ; Prevalence ; Salmon ; Trout ; Vomiting

The present study investigated the prevalence rate of Cryptosporidium parvum as a cause of diarrhea. We examined 942 stools of unidentified reasons occurring in patients in whom no immunosuppression had been detected. We examined the stools for Cryptosporidium parvum via modified acid-fast staining. The clinical records of all of the positive patients were then analyzed. Nine (1%) of the stools among the 942 diarrheal patients were positive for C. parvum. The positive rate in the males was 1.1% (6/522) and the positive rate of the females was 0.7% (3/420). Age distribution revealed that the highest positive rates were in patients in their sixties, with a positive rate of 2.5% (4/158). In the clinical tests, levels of c-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rates, and neutrophil proportions were normally increased in the peripheral blood, whereas the lymphocyte proportion exhibited a tendency towards decrease. The pathological findings were compatible with an inflammatory reaction in the host.
Adult ; Aged ; Animals ; Child, Preschool ; Cryptosporidiosis/*epidemiology/immunology ; *Cryptosporidium/isolation & purification ; Cryptosporidium parvum/isolation & purification ; Diarrhea/*epidemiology/immunology/parasitology ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; HIV Seronegativity ; Humans ; Immunocompetence ; Korea/epidemiology ; Lymphocyte Count ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Staining and Labeling

Surface ultrastructure of Parvatrema timondavidi developmental stages was studied using a scanning electron microscope. The metacercariae were collected from the marine clam, Tapes philippinarum, and juvenile and worms adult were recovered at 1, 2, 3, and 7 days after experimental infection of mice. The metacercariae had a large oral sucker and characteristic lateral projections. Around the lip of the oral sucker many type I and type II sensory papillae were observed, and type III papillae were located symmetrically on the medial side of the lateral projection. Numerous type I papillae were grouped around the genital pore. The tegumental spines were distributed over the worm surface except the lip of the sucker and genital pore. The 1-day old worm had a well-developed ventral sucker, with 6 type II sensory papillae on its outer surface and another 6 type I papillae on the inner side, Two small type I papillae were seen on the anterior side of the ventral sucker. The genital pore was and 15 type I papillae were grouped around it. The 2-, 3-, and 7-day worms revealed that as they grew to be adults, the spine tips became multipointed, the genital pore formed a genital atrium, and the cytoplasmic process became well differentiated. In 2- and 3-day worms 10 type II papillae encircling the lip of the oral sucker, and additional 4 papilled at the dorsal side of 4 dorsal type II papillae were a characteristic feature. The distribution pattern of sensory papillae around the oral sucker and genital pore, and 2 type I papillae on the anterior side of the ventra sucker, was so peculiar in P. timondavidi, that they seem to be useful keys for taxonomic differentiation from other gymnophallids.
parasitology-helminth-trematoda ; Parvatrema timondavidi ; surface ultrastructure ; scanning EM, sensory papilla ; spine ; cytoplasmic process

Glutathione S-transferase (28GST) with molecular mass of 28 kDa is an antioxidant enzyme abundant in Clonorchis sinensis. In adult C. sinensis, 28GST was localized in tegumental syncytium, cytons, parenchyma, and sperm tails examined by immunoelectron microscopy. C. sinensis 28GST was earlier found to neutralize bioreactive compounds and to be rich in eggs. Accordingly, it is suggested that 28GST plays important roles in phase II defense system and physiological roles in worm fecundity of C. sinensis.
Animals ; Clonorchis sinensis/*enzymology ; Glutathione Transferase/*metabolism/physiology ; Immunohistochemistry ; Microscopy, Immunoelectron ; Molecular Weight ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

The reservoir hosts of Thelazia callipaeda were examined. The eyes of the 76 dogs raised at farm, 78 military dogs (shepherds), 96 cattle, and 105 pigs were investigated for the presence of eyeworm. Among them, six worms of T. callipaeda were collected from two dogs raised at farm (2.7%), and 188 worms from 26 shepherds (33.5%). No worms were recovered from the cattle or pigs. These results suggest that the dogs, especially the military dogs are serving as a reservoir host of T. callipaeda. in Korea.
Animals ; Cattle ; Disease Reservoirs/*veterinary ; Dog Diseases/epidemiology/*parasitology ; Dogs ; Eye/parasitology ; Female ; *Host-Parasite Interactions ; Korea/epidemiology ; Male ; Prevalence ; Spirurida Infections/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Swine ; Thelazioidea/*isolation & purification

We investigated the optimal culture conditions for Cryptosporidium muris in a human stomach adenocarcinoma (AGS) cell line by determining the effects of medium pH and of selected supplements on the development of C. muris. The optimum pH of the culture medium required for the development of C. muris was determined to be 6.6. The number of parasites significantly increased during cultivation for 72 hr (p < 0.05) at this level. On the other hand, numbers decreased linearly after 24 hr of incubation at pH 7.5. When cultured in different concentrations of serum, C. muris in media containing 5% FBS induced 4-7 times more parasites than in 1% or 10% serum. Of the six medium supplements examined, only 1 mM pyruvate enhanced the number of C. muris in vitro. Transmission electron microscopic observation showed the developmental stages of C. muris in the cytoplasm of the cells, not in an extracytoplasmic location. The growth of C. muris in AGS cells provides a means of investigating its biological characteristics and of testing its response to therapeutic agents. However, a more optimized culture system is needed for the recovery of oocysts on a large scale in vitro.
Adenocarcinoma ; Animals ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cryptosporidium/*growth & development ; Culture Media ; Human ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Stomach/*parasitology ; Stomach Neoplasms ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

We attempted to identify parasite DNA in the biliary stones of humans via PCR and DNA sequencing. Genomic DNA was isolated from each of 15 common bile duct (CBD) stones and 5 gallbladder (GB) stones. The patients who had the CBD stones suffered from cholangitis, and the patients with GB stones showed acute cholecystitis, respectively. The 28S and 18S rDNA genes were amplified successfully from 3 and/or 1 common bile duct stone samples, and then cloned and sequenced. The 28S and 18S rDNA sequences were highly conserved among isolates. Identity of the obtained 28S D1 rDNA with that of Clonorchis sinensis was higher than 97.6%, and identity of the 18S rDNA with that of other Ascarididae was 97.9%. Almost no intra-specific variations were detected in the 28S and 18S rDNA with the exception of a few nucleotide variations, i.e., substitution and deletion. These findings suggest that C. sinensis and Ascaris lumbricoides may be related with the biliary stone formation and development.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Animals ; Ascaridida/genetics/isolation & purification ; Ascaris lumbricoides/genetics/isolation & purification ; Base Sequence ; Clonorchis sinensis/genetics/isolation & purification ; Common Bile Duct/*parasitology ; DNA, Helminth/*genetics ; DNA, Ribosomal/genetics ; Face/parasitology ; Female ; Gallbladder/parasitology ; Gallstones/*parasitology ; Helminths/genetics/*isolation & purification ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/*methods ; RNA, Ribosomal, 18S/genetics ; RNA, Ribosomal, 28S/genetics ; Sequence Alignment

Cryptosporidium, a coccidian parasite first described by Tyzzer (1907) from a laboratory mouse, has become an important human enteric pathogen causing overwhelming diarrhea especially in immunocompromised patients such as AIDS. This parasite has been reported from over 20 countries and is recognized as a cosmopolitan species. In Korea, however, there has been no report on human as well as animal cryptosporidiosis. This study was performed so as to verify the presence of Cryptosporidium in Korea by activating the parasite from laboratory mice by immunosuppression. Total 65 conventionally-bred ICR mice including a control (5 mice) and 3 experimental groups (20 each) were used for this study. Group I was immunosuppressed with prednisolone injection (1 mg IM, every other day) for 7 weeks. Group II (prednisolone injection and tetracycline administration) and Group III (prednisolone injection and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole administration) were prepared to observe the effect of antibacterial agents on the activation of cryptosporidiosis. In fecal examinations of mice Cryptosporidium oocysts (4-6 microns in size) were detected from 1 week after the start of immunosuppression and the mice began to die. In H-E stained tissue sections of the lower jejunum, numerous very small (2-4 microns), dense, ovoid or spherical, slightly basophilic bodies were seen attached on the free border of mucosal epithelial cells. In scanning and transmission electron microscopic observations, these organisms were identified as various developmental stages of Cryptosporidium. The species is considered to be C. parvum.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Cryptosporidiosis-etiology ; Cryptosporidiosis-immunology ; Cryptosporidium-growth-and-development ; English-Abstract ; Immune-Tolerance ; Intestinal-Diseases,-Parasitic-etiology ; Intestinal-Diseases,-Parasitic-immunology ; Mice- ; Mice,-Inbred-ICR ; *Cryptosporidiosis-parasitology ; *Cryptosporidium-pathogenicity ; *Immunosuppression- ; *Intestinal-Diseases,-Parasitic-parasitology

Cryptosporidium muris and C. parvum was reported by Tyzzer for the first time in 1907 and 1912, respectively from the mouse gastric gland and small intestine. The first human case was reported in 1976, and the importance of this protozoa as an opportunistic pathogen was recognized after the AIDS became an social issue as a debilitating disease all over the world in 1980s. Cryptosporidiosis provoke primarily diarrhea, and resulting in the most severe infections in immune-compromised individuals. C. parvum is a zoonotic pathogen which has a wide range of animal host as well as human. Cattle is known as the most important host among the animal, so they are important infection source as well. Infections can be established by drinking water, recreational water, and vegetables contaminated with C. parvum oocyts. But contact-borne infection with infected animals and patients can be possible. C. parvum oocysts are highly resistant to the harsh environmental conditions, so they can not be disinfected by conventional chlorine treatment method of the drinking water. Numerous reports of outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis related to drinking water in North America, UK, and Japan suggest that water-borne infection is the major way of transmission.
Animals ; Cattle ; Chlorine ; Cryptosporidiosis ; Cryptosporidium ; Diarrhea ; Disease Outbreaks ; Drinking Water ; Gastric Mucosa ; Humans ; Intestine, Small ; Japan ; Mice ; North America ; Oocysts ; Vegetables ; Water