Bronchopneumonia ; diagnosis ; parasitology ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Diseases, Parasitic ; diagnosis ; parasitology ; Male ; Protozoan Infections ; diagnosis ; parasitology

Bronchopneumonia ; diagnosis ; parasitology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Diagnostic Errors ; Humans ; Lung Diseases, Parasitic ; diagnosis ; parasitology ; Protozoan Infections ; diagnosis ; parasitology

Human infections with Lophomonas blattarum are rare. However, the majority of the infections occurred in China, 94.4% (136 cases) of all cases in the world. This infection is difficult to differentiate from other pulmonary infections with similar symptoms. Here we reported a case of L. blattarum infection confirmed by bronchoalveolar lavage fluid smear on the microscopic observations. The patient was a 21-year-old female college student. The previous case which occurred in Chongqing was 20 years ago. We briefly reviewed on this infection reported in the world during the recent 20 years. The epidemiological characteristics, possible diagnostic basis, and treatment of this disease is discussed in order to provide a better understanding of recognition, diagnosis, and treatment of L. blattarum infection.
Female ; Humans ; Lung Diseases, Parasitic/diagnosis/*parasitology ; Parabasalidea/*isolation & purification ; Protozoan Infections/*parasitology ; Young Adult

PCR detection of intestinal protozoa is often restrained by a poor DNA recovery or by inhibitors present in feces. The need for an extraction protocol that can overcome these obstacles is therefore clear. QIAamp(R) DNA Stool Mini Kit (Qiagen) was evaluated for its ability to recover DNA from oocysts/cysts directly from feces. Twenty-five Giardia-positive, 15 Cryptosporidium-positive, 15 Entamoeba histolytica-positive, and 45 protozoa-free samples were processed as control by microscopy and immunoassay tests. DNA extracts were amplified using 3 sets of published primers. Following the manufacturer's protocol, the kit showed sensitivity and specificity of 100% towards Giardia and Entamoeba. However, for Cryptosporidium, the sensitivity and specificity were 60% (9/15) and 100%, respectively. A series of optimization experiments involving various steps of the kit's protocol were conducted using Cryptosporidium-positive samples. The best DNA recoveries were gained by raising the lysis temperature to the boiling point for 10 min and the incubation time of the InhibitEX tablet to 5 min. Also, using a pre-cooled ethanol for nucleic acid precipitation and small elution volume (50-100 microl) were valuable. The sensitivity of the amended protocol to Cryptosporidium was raised to 100%. Cryptosporidium DNA was successfully amplified by either the first or the second primer set. When applied on parasite-free feces spiked with variable oocysts/cysts counts, approximately 2 oocysts/cysts were theoretically enough for detection by PCR. To conclude, the Qiagen kit with the amended protocol was proved to be suitable for protozoan DNA extraction directly from feces and support PCR diagnosis.
DNA, Protozoan/*isolation & purification ; Feces/*parasitology ; Humans ; Molecular Diagnostic Techniques/*methods ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/*methods ; Protozoan Infections/*diagnosis ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Specimen Handling/*methods ; Spores, Protozoan/*genetics

Cochlosoma sp. infection was identified in a single case among 60 stunted diarrheic native turkey poults, Meleagris galopavo. A large number of the flagellated parasites was found free or within the intervillous spaces of the jejunum, ileum and cecum. Moderate enteritis was associated with the parasites. In TEM studies of the parasagittal sections of the parasite, a prominent ventral sucker like disc and flagella emerging from an opening on the ventrodorsal surface of the pyriform uninuclear parasite were found. The morphological characteristics of this protozoan match with those described for Cochlosoma anatis. The parasite could be considered as an intestinal pathogenic protozoan causing stunting and diarrhea in turkeys in Iran.
Animals ; Cecum/parasitology/pathology ; Enteritis/diagnosis/parasitology/veterinary ; Ileum/parasitology/pathology ; Iran ; Jejunum/parasitology/pathology ; Organelles/ultrastructure ; Poultry Diseases/*diagnosis/*parasitology ; Protozoan Infections, Animal/*diagnosis/*parasitology ; Trichomonadida/cytology/*isolation & purification ; Turkeys

This study investigated the effect of breast-feeding in protection against protozoan infection in infants with persistent diarrhea. Infants were classified into 2 groups; 161 breast-fed infants and the same number of non-breast-fed infants. Microscopic examinations of stool were done for detection of parasites and measuring the intensity of infection. Moreover, serum levels of IgE and TNF-alpha were measured by ELISA. Cryptosporidium spp., Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar, Giardia lamblia, and Blastocystis sp. were demonstrated in infants with persistent diarrhea. The percentage of protozoan infections was significantly lower in breast-fed infants than that in the non-breast-fed infants. The levels of IgE and TNF-alpha were significantly lower in the breast-fed group than in the non-breast-fed group. There were significant positive associations between the serum levels of IgE and TNF-alpha and the intensity of parasite infection in the breast-fed group. It is suggested that breast-feeding has an attenuating effect on the rate and intensity of parasite infection.
Antigens, Protozoan/analysis/*immunology ; Diarrhea, Infantile/*diagnosis/parasitology ; Entamoeba ; Entamoeba histolytica/*isolation & purification ; Entamoebiasis/*diagnosis/parasitology ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; Giardia lamblia ; Giardiasis/*diagnosis/parasitology ; Humans ; Infant ; Intestines/parasitology ; Protozoan Infections/*diagnosis/parasitology ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/metabolism

After bathing at a hot spring resort, a 75-year-old man presented to the emergency department because of seizure-like attack with loss of conscious. This is the first case of primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) caused by Naegleria fowleri in Taiwan. PAM was diagnosed based on detection of actively motile trophozoites in cerebrospinal fluid using a wet-mount smear and the Liu's stain. The amoebae were further confirmed by PCR and gene sequencing. In spite of administering amphotericin B treatment, the patient died 25 days later.
Aged ; Amebiasis/*diagnosis/parasitology/*pathology ; Central Nervous System Protozoal Infections/*diagnosis/parasitology/*pathology ; Cerebrospinal Fluid/parasitology ; DNA, Protozoan/chemistry/genetics ; Fatal Outcome ; Humans ; Male ; Microscopy ; Naegleria fowleri/classification/genetics/*isolation & purification ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Taiwan