Can Free Living Acanthamoeba Act as a Trojan Horse for SARS-Cov-2 on Viral Survival and Transmission in the Environment? A Narrative Review
-
Zahra Mirabedini
,
Naveed Ahmed Khan
,
Maryam Niyyati
,
Ehsan Javanmard
,
Mohammad Hamedanipour
,
Zahra Arab-Mazar
Abstract
Acanthamoeba is a free-living amoeba that has been found on surfaces, air, water and various environmental sources around the world. It enters the human body through the respiratory tract via the nose. Of note, amoebae are well known to act as a reservoir for various pathogenic microorganisms including bacteria and viruses such as Adenoviruses and Mimivirus. Given that SARS-CoV-2 of the Coronaviridae family is transmitted through the respiratory tract, and the Trojan horse nature of Acanthamoeba, it has been suggested that amoebae act as a vector in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. The aim of this study was to provide an opinion of the possibility of the coexistence of Acanthamoeba with SARS-CoV-2.
1. Matin A. Acanthamoeba; A Potential Reservoir for Environmental Transmission of COVID-19 with Public Health Significance: Pros and Cons. Open Microbiol J. 2020;14(1):130-31.
2. Sardar R, Satish D, Birla S, Gupta D. Comparative analyses of SAR-CoV2 genomes from different geographical locations and other coronavirus family genomes reveals unique features potentially consequential to host-virus interaction and pathogenesis. BioRxiv. 2020.
3. Wu F, Zhao S, Yu B, et al. A new coronavirus associated with human respiratory disease in China. Nature. 2020;579(7798):265-9.
4. Li H, Xue Q, Xu X. Involvement of the nervous system in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Neurotox Res. 2020;38:1-7.
5. Huang C, Wang Y, Li X, et al. Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China. The lancet. 2020;395(10223):497-506.
6. Siddiqui R, Khan NA. Can the Environmental Phagocyte Acanthamoeba Be a Useful Model to Study SARS-CoV-2 Pathogenicity, Infectivity, and Evasion of Cellular Immune Defenses? ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2020;11(15):2149-51.
7. Mungroo MR, Siddiqui R, Khan NA. War of the microbial world: Acanthamoeba spp. interactions with microorganisms. Folia Microbiol. 2021:1-11.
8. Scheid P, Schwarzenberger R. Acanthamoeba spp. as vehicle and reservoir of adenoviruses. Parasitol Res. 2012;111(1):479-85.
9. Khan NA, Siddiqui R. Predator vs aliens: bacteria interactions with Acanthamoeba. Parasitology. 2014;141(7):869-74.
10. Gonçalves DdS, Ferreira MdS, Gomes KX, Rodríguez‐de La Noval C, Liedke SC, da Costa GCV, et al. Unravelling the interactions of the environmental host Acanthamoeba castellanii with fungi through the recognition by mannose‐binding proteins. Cell Microbiol. 2019;21(10):e13066.
11. Sriram R, Shoff M, Booton G, Fuerst P, Visvesvara GS. Survival of Acanthamoeba cysts after desiccation for more than 20 years. J Clin Microbiol. 2008;46(12):4045-8.
12. Fanselow N, Sirajuddin N, Yin X-T, Huang AJ, Stuart PM. Acanthamoeba keratitis, pathology, diagnosis and treatment. Pathogens. 2021;10(3):323.
13. Abrahão JS, Dornas FP, Silva LC, et al. Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus and other giant viruses: an open field to outstanding discoveries. Virol J. 2014;11(1):1-12.
14. Reteno DG, Benamar S, Khalil JB, et al. Faustovirus, an asfarvirus-related new lineage of giant viruses infecting amoebae. J Virol. 2015;89(13):6585-94.
15. Greub G, Raoult D. Microorganisms resistant to free-living amoebae. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2004;17(2):413-33.
16. McCuddin Z, Carlson S, Rasmussen M, Franklin S. Klebsiella to Salmonella gene transfer within rumen protozoa: implications for antibiotic resistance and rumen defaunation. Vet Microbiol. 2006;114(3-4):275-84.
17. Pazoki H, Niyyati M, Javanmard E, Spotin A, Mirjalali H, Behravan MR. Isolation and phylogenetic analysis of free-living amoebae (Acanthamoeba, Naegleria, and Vermamoeba) in the farmland soils and recreational places in Iran. Acta Parasitol. 2020;65(1):36-43.
18. Siddiqui R, Khan NA. War on terror cells: strategies to eradicate “novel coronavirus” effectively. ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2020;11(9):1198-9.
19. Holden EP, Winkler H, Wood D, Leinbach E. Intracellular growth of Legionella pneumophila within Acanthamoeba castellanii. NeffInfect Immun. 1984;45(1):18-24.
20. Dey R, Rieger AM, Stephens C, Ashbolt NJ. Interactions of Pseudomonas aeruginosa with Acanthamoeba polyphaga observed by imaging flow cytometry. Cytometry Part A. 2019;95(5):555-64.
21. Adékambi T, Ben Salah S, Khlif M, Raoult D, Drancourt M. Survival of environmental mycobacteria in Acanthamoeba polyphaga. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2006;72(9):5974-81.
22. Suhre K. Gene and genome duplication in Acanthamoeba polyphaga Mimivirus. Virol J. 2005;79(22):14095-101.
23. Bekliz M, Azza S, Seligmann H, Decloquement P, Raoult D, La Scola B. Experimental analysis of mimivirus translation initiation factor 4a reveals its importance in viral protein translation during infection of Acanthamoeba polyphaga. Virol J. 2018;92(10):e00337-18.
24. Lorenzo-Morales J, Coronado-Alvarez N, Martínez-Carretero E, Maciver SK, Valladares B. Detection of four adenovirus serotypes within water-isolated strains of Acanthamoeba in the Canary Islands, Spain. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2007;77(4):753.
25. Boratto PV, Oliveira GP, Machado TB, et al. Yaravirus: A novel 80-nm virus infecting Acanthamoeba castellanii. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020;117(28):16579-86.
26. Mattana A, Serra C, Mariotti E, Delogu G, Fiori PL, Cappuccinelli P. Acanthamoeba castellanii promotion of in vitro survival and transmission of coxsackie b3 viruses. Eukaryot Cell. 2006;5(4):665-71.
27. Baig AM. Can neurotropic free-living amoeba serve as a model to study SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis? ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2020;11(22):3697-700.
28. Muhammad JS, Siddiqui R, Khan NA. COVID-19: Does SARS-CoV-2 Modulate Acanthamoeba Epigenetics to Enhance Survival and Transmission in the Environment? ACS Pharmacol Transl Sci. 2021;4(2):1021-3.
29. Hashemi SA, Safamanesh S, Ghasemzadeh‐moghaddam H, Ghafouri M, Azimian A. High prevalence of SARS‐CoV‐2 and influenza A virus (H1N1) coinfection in dead patients in Northeastern Iran. J Med Virol. 2021;93(2):1008-12.
30. Arab-Mazar Z, Sah R, Rabaan AA, Dhama K, Rodriguez-Morales AJ. Mapping the incidence of the COVID-19 hotspot in Iran–Implications for Travellers. Travel Med Infect Dis. 2020;34:101630.
31. Pourmalek F, Hemami MR, Janani L, Moradi-Lakeh M. Rapid review of COVID-19 epidemic estimation studies for Iran. BMC Public Health. 2021;21(1):1-30.
32. Organization WH. WHO announces COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. 2020.
33. Khademian F, Delavari S, Koohjani Z, Khademian Z. An investigation of depression, anxiety, and stress and its relating factors during COVID-19 pandemic in Iran. BMC Public Health. 2021;21(1):1-7.
34. Taghizadeh P, Salehi S, Heshmati A, et al. Study on SARS-CoV-2 strains in Iran reveals potential contribution of co-infection with and recombination between different strains to the emergence of new strains. Virology. 2021.
35. Niyyati M, Lorenzo-Morales J, et al. Isolation and genotyping of potentially pathogenic Acanthamoeba strains from dust sources in Iran. Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 2009;103(4):425-7.
36. Lasjerdi Z, Niyyati M, Haghighi A, et al. Potentially pathogenic free-living amoebae isolated from hospital wards with immunodeficient patients in Tehran, Iran. Parasitol Res. 2011;109(3):575-80.
37. Niyyati M, Lorenzo-Morales J, Rezaie S, et al. Genotyping of Acanthamoeba isolates from clinical and environmental specimens in Iran. Exp Parasitol 2009;121(3):242-5.
38. Alsam S, Jeong SR, Sissons J, Dudley R, Kim KS, Khan NA. Escherichia coli interactions with Acanthamoeba: a symbiosis with environmental and clinical implications. J Med Microbiol. 2006;55(6):689-94.
39. Rosenberg K, Bertaux J, Krome K, Hartmann A, Scheu S, Bonkowski M. Soil amoebae rapidly change bacterial community composition in the rhizosphere of Arabidopsis thaliana. ISME J. 2009;3(6):675-84.
40. Iqbal J, Siddiqui R, Khan NA. Acanthamoeba and bacteria produce antimicrobials to target their counterpart. Parasites & Vectors. 2014;7(1):1-6.
41. de Souza TK, Soares SS, Benitez LB, Rott MB. Interaction between methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Acanthamoeba polyphaga. Curr Microbiol. 2017;74(5):541-9.
42. Elsaftawy E, Wassef R, Amin N. Can endemic parasitic diseases and/or vectors play a role in the COVID-19 pandemic? Parasitologists United Journal. 2021;14(1):7-14.
43. Diesend J, Kruse J, Hagedorn M, Hammann C. Amoebae, giant viruses, and virophages make up a complex, multilayered threesome. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2018;7:527.
44. Legendre M, Lartigue A, Bertaux L, et al. In-depth study of Mollivirus sibericum, a new 30,000-y-old giant virus infecting Acanthamoeba. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015;112(38):E5327-E35.
45. Colson P, Pagnier I, Yoosuf N, Fournous G, La Scola B, Raoult D. “Marseilleviridae”, a new family of giant viruses infecting amoebae. Arch Virol. 2013;158(4):915-20.
46. Maruyama F, Ueki S. Evolution and phylogeny of large DNA viruses, Mimiviridae and Phycodnaviridae including newly characterized Heterosigma akashiwo virus. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2016;7:1942.
47. Zauberman N, Mutsafi Y, Halevy DB, et al. Distinct DNA exit and packaging portals in the virus Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus. PLoS Biol. 2008;6(5):e114.
48. La Scola B, Audic S, Robert C, et al. A giant virus in amoebae. Science. 2003;299(5615):2033.
49. Seltzner CA, Ferek JD, Thoden JB, Holden HM. Characterization of an aminotransferase from Acanthamoeba polyphaga Mimivirus. Protein Sci. 2021; 30(9):1882-1894.
50. Hasöksüz M, Kiliç S, Saraç F. Coronaviruses and sars-cov-2. Turk J Med Sci. 2020;50(SI-1):549-56.
51. Long QX, Tang XJ, Shi QL, et al. Clinical and immunological assessment of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections. Nat Med. 2020;26(8):1200-4.
52. Sakurai A, Sasaki T, Kato S, Hayashi M, Tsuzuki S-i, Ishihara T, et al. Natural history of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection. N Engl J Med. 2020;383(9):885-6.
53. Siddiqui R, Ahmed Khan N. Centralized air-conditioning and transmission of novel coronavirus. Pathog Glob Health. 2020;114(5):228-9.
54. Hsueh T-Y, Gibson KE. Interactions between human norovirus surrogates and Acanthamoeba spp. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2015;81(12):4005-13.
55. de Lacerda AG, Lira M. Acanthamoeba keratitis: A review of biology, pathophysiology and epidemiology. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt. 2021;41(1):116-35.
2. Sardar R, Satish D, Birla S, Gupta D. Comparative analyses of SAR-CoV2 genomes from different geographical locations and other coronavirus family genomes reveals unique features potentially consequential to host-virus interaction and pathogenesis. BioRxiv. 2020.
3. Wu F, Zhao S, Yu B, et al. A new coronavirus associated with human respiratory disease in China. Nature. 2020;579(7798):265-9.
4. Li H, Xue Q, Xu X. Involvement of the nervous system in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Neurotox Res. 2020;38:1-7.
5. Huang C, Wang Y, Li X, et al. Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China. The lancet. 2020;395(10223):497-506.
6. Siddiqui R, Khan NA. Can the Environmental Phagocyte Acanthamoeba Be a Useful Model to Study SARS-CoV-2 Pathogenicity, Infectivity, and Evasion of Cellular Immune Defenses? ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2020;11(15):2149-51.
7. Mungroo MR, Siddiqui R, Khan NA. War of the microbial world: Acanthamoeba spp. interactions with microorganisms. Folia Microbiol. 2021:1-11.
8. Scheid P, Schwarzenberger R. Acanthamoeba spp. as vehicle and reservoir of adenoviruses. Parasitol Res. 2012;111(1):479-85.
9. Khan NA, Siddiqui R. Predator vs aliens: bacteria interactions with Acanthamoeba. Parasitology. 2014;141(7):869-74.
10. Gonçalves DdS, Ferreira MdS, Gomes KX, Rodríguez‐de La Noval C, Liedke SC, da Costa GCV, et al. Unravelling the interactions of the environmental host Acanthamoeba castellanii with fungi through the recognition by mannose‐binding proteins. Cell Microbiol. 2019;21(10):e13066.
11. Sriram R, Shoff M, Booton G, Fuerst P, Visvesvara GS. Survival of Acanthamoeba cysts after desiccation for more than 20 years. J Clin Microbiol. 2008;46(12):4045-8.
12. Fanselow N, Sirajuddin N, Yin X-T, Huang AJ, Stuart PM. Acanthamoeba keratitis, pathology, diagnosis and treatment. Pathogens. 2021;10(3):323.
13. Abrahão JS, Dornas FP, Silva LC, et al. Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus and other giant viruses: an open field to outstanding discoveries. Virol J. 2014;11(1):1-12.
14. Reteno DG, Benamar S, Khalil JB, et al. Faustovirus, an asfarvirus-related new lineage of giant viruses infecting amoebae. J Virol. 2015;89(13):6585-94.
15. Greub G, Raoult D. Microorganisms resistant to free-living amoebae. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2004;17(2):413-33.
16. McCuddin Z, Carlson S, Rasmussen M, Franklin S. Klebsiella to Salmonella gene transfer within rumen protozoa: implications for antibiotic resistance and rumen defaunation. Vet Microbiol. 2006;114(3-4):275-84.
17. Pazoki H, Niyyati M, Javanmard E, Spotin A, Mirjalali H, Behravan MR. Isolation and phylogenetic analysis of free-living amoebae (Acanthamoeba, Naegleria, and Vermamoeba) in the farmland soils and recreational places in Iran. Acta Parasitol. 2020;65(1):36-43.
18. Siddiqui R, Khan NA. War on terror cells: strategies to eradicate “novel coronavirus” effectively. ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2020;11(9):1198-9.
19. Holden EP, Winkler H, Wood D, Leinbach E. Intracellular growth of Legionella pneumophila within Acanthamoeba castellanii. NeffInfect Immun. 1984;45(1):18-24.
20. Dey R, Rieger AM, Stephens C, Ashbolt NJ. Interactions of Pseudomonas aeruginosa with Acanthamoeba polyphaga observed by imaging flow cytometry. Cytometry Part A. 2019;95(5):555-64.
21. Adékambi T, Ben Salah S, Khlif M, Raoult D, Drancourt M. Survival of environmental mycobacteria in Acanthamoeba polyphaga. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2006;72(9):5974-81.
22. Suhre K. Gene and genome duplication in Acanthamoeba polyphaga Mimivirus. Virol J. 2005;79(22):14095-101.
23. Bekliz M, Azza S, Seligmann H, Decloquement P, Raoult D, La Scola B. Experimental analysis of mimivirus translation initiation factor 4a reveals its importance in viral protein translation during infection of Acanthamoeba polyphaga. Virol J. 2018;92(10):e00337-18.
24. Lorenzo-Morales J, Coronado-Alvarez N, Martínez-Carretero E, Maciver SK, Valladares B. Detection of four adenovirus serotypes within water-isolated strains of Acanthamoeba in the Canary Islands, Spain. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2007;77(4):753.
25. Boratto PV, Oliveira GP, Machado TB, et al. Yaravirus: A novel 80-nm virus infecting Acanthamoeba castellanii. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020;117(28):16579-86.
26. Mattana A, Serra C, Mariotti E, Delogu G, Fiori PL, Cappuccinelli P. Acanthamoeba castellanii promotion of in vitro survival and transmission of coxsackie b3 viruses. Eukaryot Cell. 2006;5(4):665-71.
27. Baig AM. Can neurotropic free-living amoeba serve as a model to study SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis? ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2020;11(22):3697-700.
28. Muhammad JS, Siddiqui R, Khan NA. COVID-19: Does SARS-CoV-2 Modulate Acanthamoeba Epigenetics to Enhance Survival and Transmission in the Environment? ACS Pharmacol Transl Sci. 2021;4(2):1021-3.
29. Hashemi SA, Safamanesh S, Ghasemzadeh‐moghaddam H, Ghafouri M, Azimian A. High prevalence of SARS‐CoV‐2 and influenza A virus (H1N1) coinfection in dead patients in Northeastern Iran. J Med Virol. 2021;93(2):1008-12.
30. Arab-Mazar Z, Sah R, Rabaan AA, Dhama K, Rodriguez-Morales AJ. Mapping the incidence of the COVID-19 hotspot in Iran–Implications for Travellers. Travel Med Infect Dis. 2020;34:101630.
31. Pourmalek F, Hemami MR, Janani L, Moradi-Lakeh M. Rapid review of COVID-19 epidemic estimation studies for Iran. BMC Public Health. 2021;21(1):1-30.
32. Organization WH. WHO announces COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. 2020.
33. Khademian F, Delavari S, Koohjani Z, Khademian Z. An investigation of depression, anxiety, and stress and its relating factors during COVID-19 pandemic in Iran. BMC Public Health. 2021;21(1):1-7.
34. Taghizadeh P, Salehi S, Heshmati A, et al. Study on SARS-CoV-2 strains in Iran reveals potential contribution of co-infection with and recombination between different strains to the emergence of new strains. Virology. 2021.
35. Niyyati M, Lorenzo-Morales J, et al. Isolation and genotyping of potentially pathogenic Acanthamoeba strains from dust sources in Iran. Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 2009;103(4):425-7.
36. Lasjerdi Z, Niyyati M, Haghighi A, et al. Potentially pathogenic free-living amoebae isolated from hospital wards with immunodeficient patients in Tehran, Iran. Parasitol Res. 2011;109(3):575-80.
37. Niyyati M, Lorenzo-Morales J, Rezaie S, et al. Genotyping of Acanthamoeba isolates from clinical and environmental specimens in Iran. Exp Parasitol 2009;121(3):242-5.
38. Alsam S, Jeong SR, Sissons J, Dudley R, Kim KS, Khan NA. Escherichia coli interactions with Acanthamoeba: a symbiosis with environmental and clinical implications. J Med Microbiol. 2006;55(6):689-94.
39. Rosenberg K, Bertaux J, Krome K, Hartmann A, Scheu S, Bonkowski M. Soil amoebae rapidly change bacterial community composition in the rhizosphere of Arabidopsis thaliana. ISME J. 2009;3(6):675-84.
40. Iqbal J, Siddiqui R, Khan NA. Acanthamoeba and bacteria produce antimicrobials to target their counterpart. Parasites & Vectors. 2014;7(1):1-6.
41. de Souza TK, Soares SS, Benitez LB, Rott MB. Interaction between methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Acanthamoeba polyphaga. Curr Microbiol. 2017;74(5):541-9.
42. Elsaftawy E, Wassef R, Amin N. Can endemic parasitic diseases and/or vectors play a role in the COVID-19 pandemic? Parasitologists United Journal. 2021;14(1):7-14.
43. Diesend J, Kruse J, Hagedorn M, Hammann C. Amoebae, giant viruses, and virophages make up a complex, multilayered threesome. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2018;7:527.
44. Legendre M, Lartigue A, Bertaux L, et al. In-depth study of Mollivirus sibericum, a new 30,000-y-old giant virus infecting Acanthamoeba. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015;112(38):E5327-E35.
45. Colson P, Pagnier I, Yoosuf N, Fournous G, La Scola B, Raoult D. “Marseilleviridae”, a new family of giant viruses infecting amoebae. Arch Virol. 2013;158(4):915-20.
46. Maruyama F, Ueki S. Evolution and phylogeny of large DNA viruses, Mimiviridae and Phycodnaviridae including newly characterized Heterosigma akashiwo virus. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2016;7:1942.
47. Zauberman N, Mutsafi Y, Halevy DB, et al. Distinct DNA exit and packaging portals in the virus Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus. PLoS Biol. 2008;6(5):e114.
48. La Scola B, Audic S, Robert C, et al. A giant virus in amoebae. Science. 2003;299(5615):2033.
49. Seltzner CA, Ferek JD, Thoden JB, Holden HM. Characterization of an aminotransferase from Acanthamoeba polyphaga Mimivirus. Protein Sci. 2021; 30(9):1882-1894.
50. Hasöksüz M, Kiliç S, Saraç F. Coronaviruses and sars-cov-2. Turk J Med Sci. 2020;50(SI-1):549-56.
51. Long QX, Tang XJ, Shi QL, et al. Clinical and immunological assessment of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections. Nat Med. 2020;26(8):1200-4.
52. Sakurai A, Sasaki T, Kato S, Hayashi M, Tsuzuki S-i, Ishihara T, et al. Natural history of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection. N Engl J Med. 2020;383(9):885-6.
53. Siddiqui R, Ahmed Khan N. Centralized air-conditioning and transmission of novel coronavirus. Pathog Glob Health. 2020;114(5):228-9.
54. Hsueh T-Y, Gibson KE. Interactions between human norovirus surrogates and Acanthamoeba spp. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2015;81(12):4005-13.
55. de Lacerda AG, Lira M. Acanthamoeba keratitis: A review of biology, pathophysiology and epidemiology. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt. 2021;41(1):116-35.
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 17 No 2 (2022) | |
| Section | Review Article(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/ijpa.v17i2.9529 | |
| Keywords | ||
| SARS-CoV-2 Acanthamoeba Interaction | ||
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How to Cite
1.
Mirabedini Z, Ahmed Khan N, Niyyati M, Javanmard E, Hamedanipour M, Arab-Mazar Z. Can Free Living Acanthamoeba Act as a Trojan Horse for SARS-Cov-2 on Viral Survival and Transmission in the Environment? A Narrative Review. Iran J Parasitol. 2022;17(2):138-144.
