2023 Impact Factor: 0.9
2023 CiteScore: 1.8
pISSN: 1735-7020
eISSN: 2008-238x
Editor-in-Chief:
Gholamhossein Edrissian, Pharm. D.
This journal is a member of, and subscribes to the principles of, the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Vol 9 No 1 (2014)
Articles
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Background: Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is one of the most important parasitic diseases endemic in northwestern and southern areas of Iran. The aim of the pre-sent study was to review the records of children hospitalized with VL in order to characterize the clinical features of children as well as laboratory finding in Chil-dren Medical Center Hospital, Tehran, Iran.
Methods: The medical records of all children with a final diagnosis of VL were reviewed from 2004 to 2011. Demographic, clinical information, laboratory find-ing and treatment were considered.
Results: A total number of 34 children with confirmed VL through 2004-2011 were included in the study. The most prevalent sign and symptoms were fever (97.1%), pallor and weakness (97.1%), appetite loss (61.8%), splenomegaly (97.1%) and hepatomegaly (88.2%). The most frequent laboratory abnormalities were hematological including anemia (97.1%), thrombocytopenia (91.2%) and leukopenia (67.6%). Direct agglutination test (DAT) was performed in 23 cases and all of them showed anti-Leishmania antibodies with titers of ≥ 1: 3200. In addition, 90% of patients had positive rK39 results. Identification of Leishmania in the aspirates of the bone marrow was found in 83.3% of patients.
Conclusion: Regional surveillance system in order to monitoring of leishmania-sis trends as well as detection of new emerging foci is recommended.
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Background: Although pentavalent antimony compounds are used as antileish-manial drugs but they are associated with limitations and several adverse complica-tions. Therefore, always effort to find a new and effective treatment is desired. In this study, the effect of ZnO nanoparticles with mean particle size of 20 nanome-ters (nm) on Leishmania major promastigotes and amastigotes was evaluated.
Methods: Viability percentage of promastigotes after adding different concentra-tions of ZnO nanoparticles (30, 60, 90 and 120 μg/ml) to the parasite culture was evaluated by MTT assay. In the flow cytometry study, Annexin V-FITC Apoptosis detection Kit was used to study the induced apoptosis and necrotic effects.
Result : IC50 after 24 hours of incubation was 37.8 μg/ml. ZnO nanoparticles ex-ert cytotoxic effects on promastigotes of L. major through the induction of apopto-sis. A concentration of 120 μg/ml of ZnO nanoparticles induced 93.76% apoptosis in L. major after 72 hours.
Conclusion: ZnO NPs can induce apoptosis in L. major by dose and time-de-pended manner in vitro condition.
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Background: Free-living amoebae (FLA) including Acanthamoeba spp. and Hartmannella spp. are the causative agents of serious corneal infection especially within contact lens wearers. Thus contact lenses and their storage case could be a suitable niche for potentially pathogenic amoebae. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate the contamination of contact lenses to free living amoebae using morphological and sequencing based methods.
Methods: Overall, 90 volunteers provided their contact lenses. All volunteers wore soft contact lenses. Both lenses were cultured in the same plate. Forty-eight of the volunteers were medical and dentistry student and 42 were oph-thalmology attendees of hospitals in Tehran, Iran. All of the samples were in-oculated to non-nutrient medium and monitored daily for the outgrowth of the amoebae. PCR and sequencing were performed using various primer pairs.
Results: Of the 90 volunteers, 9 (10%) were positive for free-living amoebae outgrowth. Morphological analysis revealed that 3 isolates were belonged to Hartmannella genus according to small round cysts and 6 isolates were belonged to Acanthamoeba genus based on the star shape of endocysts. Sequencing re-vealed that Acanthamoeba belonged to T4, T3 and T5 genotype. Hartmannella were also belonged to vermiformis species.
Discussion: The presence of potentially pathogenic free living amoebae includ-ing Acanthamoeba and Hartmannella could be a high risk for people using soft contact lenses. These results revealed that improved clarification and profes-sional recommendations for contact lens wearers is of utmost importance.
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Background: The present study was aimed to investigate molecular diversity of Echino-coccus granulosus isolates collected from human clinical samples using two mitochondrial genes cox1 and nad1 in Iran.
Methods: Forty seven human hydatid cysts were collected through surgery from two hospitals in Tehran during 2010-2012. To determine the fertility of protoscoleces, the cyst fluids were subjected to morphological microscopic examinations. Protoscoleces were removed from each cyst and their total genomic DNAs were extracted. PCR was performed to amplify fragments of 450 and 400 base pair (bp) for cox1 and nad1 genes, respectively. Genotype diversity and sequence variation of the strains were studied by bioinformatics software and in comparison with those mtDNA sequences already de-posited in GenBank.
Results: Sixteen, (53.3%), 13 (43.3%), and 1 (3.3%) samples were related to lung, liver, and spleen, respectively. The remained 17 unfertile samples were excluded from the study. From the 29 isolates, 86.7% (n=26) and 10% (n=3) were related to G1, and G3 genotypes, respectively. The sole isolate with G6 genotype was obtained from lung sample. Analysis of concatenated sequences of cox1+nad1 indicated the presence of 11 haplotypes among our strains that were related to genotypes G1 (n=9), G3 (n=1) and G6 (n=1).
Conclusion: In consistent to other reports from Iran, genotypes G1, G3, and G6 were observed in our human isolates. The rate of G3 genotype was however higher than other studies implying that human can be considered as a new appropriate host for G3 genotype. Further studies with more sample size from different geographic areas of Iran are needed for E. granulosus mapping.
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Background: Leishmaniasis has been identified as a major public health problem in tropical and sub-tropical countries. The present study was aimed to investigate antileishmanial effects of various extracts of Berberis vulgaris also its active com-poenent, berberine against Leishmania tropica and L. infantum species on in vitro ex-periments.
Methods: In this study in vitro antileishmanial activity of various extracts of B. vul-garis also its active compoenent, berberine against promastigote and amastigote stages of L. tropica and L. infantum was evaluated, using MTT assay and in a macro-phage model, respectively. Furthermore, infectivity rate and cytotoxicity effects of B. vulgaris and berberine in murine macrophage cells were investigated.
Results: The findings of optical density (OD) and IC50 indicated that B. vulgaris particulary berberine significantly (P<0.05) inhibited the growth rate of pro-mastigote stage of L.tropica and L.infantum in comparison to meglumine antimoniate (MA). In addition, B. vulgaris and berberine significantly (P<0.05) decreased the mean number of amastigotes in each macrophage as compared with positive con-trol. In the evaluation of cytotoxicity effects, it could be observed that berberine as compared with B. vulgaris exhibited more cytotoxicity against murine macrophages. Results also showed that when parasites were pre-incubated with B. vulgaris their ability to infect murine macrophages was significantly decreased.
Conclusion: B.vulgaris particularly berberine exhibited potent in vitro leishmanicid-al effects against L. tropica and L.infantum. Further works are required to evaluate the antileishmanial effects of B.vulgaris on Leishmania species using clinical settings.
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Background: Malaria is well known for its fatalities worldwide, Plasmodium vivax and the Plasmodium falciparum are the two important species of malaria reported from Pakistan and creating lots of morbidities across the country.
Method: Study was conducted to determine the Surveillance of malaria in South Punjab by microscopy and Polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
Result : 40 samples out of 100 patients were found positive for malarial parasites. One patient was found with mixed infection, whereas P. falciparum and P. vivax in-fections were detected in 17 and 22 patients respectively. In nested PCR, genus-specific primers for Plasmodium species. in round 1 and species-specific primers for P. falciparum and P. vivax in round 2 were used. By the application of PCR 41% were found to be infected by Plasmodium spp. Among Plasmodium positive patients: mixed, P. falciparum and P. vivax infection were detected in 10, 15 and 16 patients respec-tively. Thirty nine microscopically positive patients confirmed to have Plasmodium spp. One negative by PCR, 2 microscopically negative patients had shown Plasmo-dium spp. infection (P. falciparum and P. vivax) by PCR. In total samples, P. falciparum, P. vivax and mixed infection accounted for 36.6%, 39.0% and 24.3% respectively.
Conclusion: Microscopy was found deficient for interpretation of mixed infec-tions, low parasitaemia, and species specific diagnosis. The sensitivity, specificity and efficacy of nested PCR was calculated 95%, 98% and 97% respectively show-ing PCR as a more effective and efficient diagnostic tool for malaria.
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Background: There are some genetic differences in Blastocystis that show the existence of species or genotypes. One of these genes that help in identifying Blastocystis is SSUrRNA. The aim of this study was assessment of genetic diver-sity of Blastocystis by PCR with seven pairs of STS primers.
Methods: This study was done on 511 stool samples collected from patients referred to the health care centers of Khorramabad, Central Iran, in 2012. Ge-nomic DNA was extracted and in order to determine the Blastocystis subtype in contaminated samples, seven pairs of primers STS (subtype specific sequence-tagged site) were used.
Results: Out of 511 samples, 33 (6.5%) samples were infected with Blastocystis. Subtype (ST) of 30 samples was identified and three subtypes 2, 3 and 4 were determined. Mix infection was reported 10% which 3.33% of the infection was for the mixture of ST 3 and ST5 and 6.67% was for the mixture of ST 2 and ST 3.
Conclusion: The predominant subtype was ST3 that is the main human sub-type. The dominance of ST2 and 5 are important in this study. This superiority has been reported in some of the studies in ST 2 which is different from the studies in other countries, because they have announced priorities of the ST1 and ST6 after ST3.
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Background: Parasitological methods for the diagnosis of Visceral leishmania-sis (VL) require invasive procedures, so serological and molecular approaches have been developed but are not generally applicable in the field. We evaluated a loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay using blood from VL pa-tients and compared it to nested PCR.
Methods: Forty-seven subjects with clinical features (fever, hepatosplenomegaly and anemia) were confirmed positive for VL by the direct agglutination test (DAT) at titers >3200. Forty DAT negative individuals from non-endemic areas with no clinical signs or symptoms of VL served as controls. A LAMP assay was performed using a set of six primers targeting Leishmania infantum kinetoplast DNA (kDNA) minicircle gene under isothermal (64 °C) conditions. For nested PCR we used primers targeting the kDNA minicircle gene.
Results: The LAMP assay provided a detection limit of 1 parasite in 1 ml of peripheral blood and detected L. infantum DNA in 44 of 47 DAT-confirmed VL cases, with diagnostic sensitivity of 93.6% (95% CI). No L. infantum DNA was amplified in controls, indicating a specificity of 100%. The nested PCR yielded sensitivity of 96% (95% CI) and a specificity of 100% (95% CI).
Conclusion: The LAMP assay gave results similar to those of nested PCR but in a shorter time. The LAMP method is simple; requires no sophisticated equip-ment; has a short reaction time; and results, indicated by turbidity of the reaction mixture, are observable with the naked eye.
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Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Leishmania major infection on the induction of oxidative stress in skin and lung of female mice.
Methods: BALB/c mice were randomly divided into the control and experi-mental groups. The experimental groups were subcutaneously infected with in-oculums promastigotes of L. major. The animals were sacrificed at 20, 40, 60, 90 and 120 days post-infection, and tissues were isolated and analyzed.
Results: Superoxide dismutase activity, percent of DNA fragmentation and su-peroxide anion production levels were increased in skin and lung of infected mice. Lung catalase activity and skin malondialdehyde level were also increased. The decreased glutathione level was observed in both tissues. The highest altera-tion in these parameters in both tissues was observed at 90 days post-infection.
Conclusion: L. major infection induces the production of free radicals and oxida-tive stress in a time-dependent manner in mice skin and lung by depletion of glu-tathione and increasing lipid peroxidation. The elevated DNA fragmentation may be related with increased oxidative stress. The skin is more sensitive to the effects of L. major infection on oxidative stress induction compared to the lung.
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Background: Giardia duodenalis is one of the most common human intestinal pro-tozoan parasites worldwide and is endemic throughout the world with a vast range of mammalian hosts. The present study aimed to identify the prevalence of G. duo-denalis isolates and determine the most common of its assemblages in the patients referring to health centers and hospitals in Fars province, Iran that will be subjected to further molecular investigation.
Methods: We collected 1000 human fecal samples from health centers and hospi-tals in Shiraz, Iran in a one year period from September 2009 to August 2010. Mi-croscopic examination for the presence of G. duodenalis cysts and trophozoites was performed by direct wet mount before and after the concentration techniques. Ex-traction of DNA was performed by Phenol-Chloroform-Isoamylalcohol (PCI). G. duodenalis-positive specimens were analyzed by PCR. A fragment of the SSU-rDNA (292 bp) gene was amplified by PCR using the forward primer RH11 and the re-verse primer RH4. Genotyping was performed using sequence analysis of G. duode-nalis glutamate dehydrogenase gene using primers GDHeF, GDHiF, and GDHiR.
Results: The prevalence of Giardia infection was 10.7% (107/1000) examined based on microscopic examination. PCR identified 80% (40/50) of the samples as positive for G. duodenalis based on SSU-rDNA amplification on sucrose gradient samples. Besides, genotyping results indicated 32 isolates (80%) as assemblage AII and 8 isolates (20%) as assemblage BIII and BIV based on the DNA sequence analysis of the glutamate dehydrogenase locus of G. duodenalis.
Conclusion: The findings of this study emphasize that Iran (Fars Province) is a favorable area for giardiasis with an anthroponotic infection route.
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Background: Cryptosporidium species are important cause of diarrheal diseases in both developing and developed countries. This study aimed to compare the perfor-mance of several molecular methods for identification of Cryptosporidium species, and to detect genetic variation among each of these species isolated from Iran, Ma-lawi, Nigeria, Vietnam and the United Kingdom.
Methods: The oocysts DNA samples were derived from 106 Cryptosporidium posi-tive feces. Polymerase chain reaction, PCR- restriction fragment length polymor-phism and DNA sequence analysis of the 18S rRNA and the Cryptosporidium oo-cysts wall protein genes; PCR and DNA sequence analysis of a fragment of 70 kDa heat shock protein and 60 kDa glycoprotein genes were carried out.
Results: Based on these analysis, three species of Cryptosporidium including C. homi-nis, C. parvum and C. meleagridis, and both C. hominis and C. parvum were found in Iranian and the UK samples, respectively. Also, three C. hominis (Ib, Ib3& Id) and three C. parvum (IIa, IIc & IId) subtypes were identified by sequence analysis of the GP60 gene. Of these, C. hominis Ib was predominant and interestingly, one subgen-otype (C. hominis Ib A10G2) accounted for the majority of the samples.
Conclusion: The current study demonstrates the complex subtypes of Cryptosporid-ium isolates in both developing and developed countries. This is the first report of C. parvum IId subgenotype and three new subtypes of C. parvum IIa in the UK, a new subtype of C. hominis Id from Malawi; and the first multi-locus study of three species of Cryptosporidium in human from Iran.
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Background: A reactive oxygen and nitrogen intermediate produced during an inflammatory response is the important part of host-defense strategies of organ-isms to kill the parasite. However, it is not well known whether these intermediates cause DNA damage and oxidative stress in goats infected with Babesia ovis. The pur-pose of this study was to clarify the effects of babesiosis on basal levels of DNA damage and oxidative status of goats naturally infected with B.ovis.
Methods: DNA damage and antioxidant parameters were determined in B. ovis infected goats. Ten infected Anatolian Black Goats with B. ovis diagnosed via clinical signs and microscopic findings and ten healthy were used in the study.
Results: The Babesia infection increased the levels of DNA damage, malondialde-hyde (MDA), protein carbonyl content (PCO) and plasma concentration of nitric oxide metabolites (NOx), and decreased total antioxidant activities (AOA) and re-duced glutathione (GSH). A significant positive correlation between DNA damage, MDA, PCO, and NOx concentrations was found in the infected goats. DNA dam-age showed a negative association with AOA and GSH concentrations in the in-fected goats.
Conclusion: The Babesia infection increases oxidative stress markers and DNA damage and decreases AOA in goats. These results suggest that the increases in the production of free radicals due to Babesia infection not only contribute to host-de-fense strategies of organisms to kill the parasite but also induce oxidative damage in other cells.
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Background: The present study was carried out to investigate the accurate status of ovine Theileria infection in sheep from Ahvaz and surrounding region, a tropical area southwest Iran.
Methods:A PCR-RFLP method based on 18S ribosomal RNA gene was designed which could detect and differentiate Theileria and Babesia spp. and also differentiate main Theileria species in sheep at the same time. 119 sheep blood samples were col-lected from Ahvaz and surroundings.
Results: Microscopic examination of blood smears revealed 69.7% (83/119) infec-tion with Theileria spp. Of the total samples subjected to PCR, 89% (106/119) were found to be positive, all of which were identified as Theileria by RFLP analysis using enzyme Hind II. In enzymatic digestion of PCR products by Vsp I, 91.5% (97/106) of Theileria positive samples were identified as T. ovis while mixed Theileria infections were found in 9 samples. The samples with mixed infections were analyzed with an additional nested PCR-RFLP method, by HpaII enzyme digestion. 3 samples with T. lestoquardi infection, 1 sample with T. ovis and T. annulata, 1 sample with T. lestoquardi and T. annulata, and 4 samples with T. ovis, T. lestoquardi and T. annulata mixed infections were detected.
Conclusion: Ovine theileriosis caused by T. ovis is highly prevalent in southwest Iran while T. lestoquardi and T. annulata infection can be detected in a lesser propor-tion of sheep in this region. The new PCR-RFLP method that was designed in this study, can serve as a beneficial diagnostic tool, especially in T. ovis prevalent re-gions.
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Background: Fasciola hepatica is one of the most important helminthes parasites and triclabendazole (TCBZ) is routinely used for treatment of infected people and animals. Secreted protease enzymes by the F. hepatica plays a critical role in the inva-sion, migration, nutrition and the survival of parasite and are key targets for novel drugs and vaccines. The aim of study was to determine the protease activity of ex-cretory- secretory products (ESP) of F. hepatica in the presence of TCBZ anthel-mintic.
Methods: F. hepatica helminthes were collected and cultured within RPMI 1640 [TCBZ treated (test) and untreated (control)] for 6 h at 37 °C. ESP of treated and control were collected, centrifuged and supernatants were stored at -20°C. Protein concentrations were measured according to Bradford method. Protease enzymes activities of ESP samples were estimated by using sigma's non-specific protease activity assay. ESP protein bands were detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate poly-acrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE).
Results: Mean protein concentrations in control and treated of ESP samples were determined 196.1 ±14.52 and 376.4 ±28.20 μg/ml, respectively. Mean protease enzymes activities in control and treated were 0.37 ±0.1 and 0.089 ±0.03 U/ml, respectively. Significant difference between proteins concentrations and protease enzymes activities of two groups was observed (P<0.05). SDS-PAGE showed dif-ferent patterns of protein bands between treated and control samples.
Conclusion: The TCBZ reduced secreted protease enzymes activities and possibly effects on invasion, migration, nutrition and particularly survival of the parasite in the host tissues.
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Background: Toxoplasma gondii, an apicomplexan parasite, is capable of infecting a broad range of intermediate warm-blooded hosts including humans. The parasite seems to be capable of altering the natural behavior of the host to favor its trans-mission in the environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the course, alter-ations in behavior along with normal kinetics of the abnormally induced experi-mental acute toxoplasmosis in murine models.
Methods: Ten Swiss albino mice were intraperitoneally inoculated with 100 viru-lent RH strain tachyzoites and finally, the alterations in behavior were described and compared with other known alterations in humans and animals.
Results: The behavior and the other symptoms of the acute toxoplasmosis were recorded. Such mice showed typical symptoms like normal coat, severe ascites with pendulous abdomen and tachypnoea exhibited by resting fore legs either on walls of the cage, or nozzle of water bottle or other resting mice and yielded a creamy colored cloudy natured peritoneal fluid on aspiration.
Conclusions: Finally the alterations in behavior were described and compared with other known alterations in humans and animals. The study has generated some im-portant data related to possible causes of behavioral alterations and generation of suitable strategies for control of these alterations in behavior vis-à-vis better under-standing of the effect of acute infection of parasite on normal behavior of infected intermediate host.
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Background: The prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in the blood donors has been poorly studied. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of acute and chronic toxoplasmosis in blood products.
Methods: A total of 250 blood products (112 fresh frozen plasma and 138 packed cells) in the Blood Transfusion Institute, Shiraz, Iran were tested for spe-cific T. gondii antibodies (IgG and IgM) by ELISA method in 2013. Positive IgG anti-T. gondii samples were further tested for IgM anti-T. gondii antibody. A posi-tive IgG test with the negative and positive IgM test was interpreted as a chronic and acute toxoplasmosis respectively. The relationship of jobs, blood types, sex, marital status and residency of participants with chronic toxoplasmosis prevalence were statistically analyzed by χ2.
Results: Of 250 samples, 58 (23.2%) and one were positive for IgG anti-T. T. gondii (chronic) and IgM anti-T. T. gondii (acute) antibodies levels respectively. Twenty nine (25.9%) of fresh frozen plasma (FFP) samples were positive for IgG anti-T. gondiiiand 1(0.89%) of them was positive for IgM anti-T. gondiii antibody. Thirty (21.74%) of packed cell samples were positive for IgG anti-T. gondii anti-body. The prevalence of chronic toxoplasmosis was significantly higher in work-ers, farmers, house wives, unemployed and free jobs (P=0.007), people with low education levels (P=0.035) and B type of blood ABO system (P=0.0001). How-ever, there were no significant differences regarding to age, sex, marital status, residency and type of blood products.
Conclusions: There were chronic and acute toxoplasmosis in blood products and the prevalence of toxoplasmosis especially chronic form was high. Therefore screening of blood for T. gondii antibodies may be considered.
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Background: Balantidium coli infects humans, primates and pigs, causing serious diarrhea and dysentery. Little information on the prevalence of B. coli in primates is available in China. This investigation was conducted to determine the prevalence of B. coli infection in bred rhesus monkeys in Guangxi Zhuang Nationality Autono-mous Region (GZNAR), southern China.
Methods: A total of 120 fecal samples were collected from rhesus monkeys bred in cages in GZNAR and B. coli cysts and/or trophozoites were examined microscopi-cally after sedimentation with water in May 2013.
Results: 77 (64.2%) samples were tested positive. The prevalence was 65% (39/60) and 63.3% (38/60) in female and male monkeys, respectively. 80% (48/60) cages in this nonhuman primate center were positive for B. coli.
Conclusion: The present survey revealed high circulation of B. coli in bred rhesus monkeys in GZNAR, which poses potential threats to animal and human health.
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Background: Echinococcus granulosus cultivation is very important for improvement of different aspect of medical and veterinary researches. Despite many advances in this case, there is a missing link for in vitro life cycle of adult worms and it is fertili-zation. Regarding the researchers’ observations, self-fertilization can be done in worms living in dog intestine, but despite all sorts of experimental techniques, this phenomenon has never been observed in reared worms in culture media. Further-more cross fertilization has not been observed in vitro and even in parasites with dog intestinal origin; although it theoretically is possible. During a follow-up of cultivated adult worms, evidences of behaviors similar to self-mating (Type 2) and cross-mating were observed in our lab which will be presented here.
Methods: Protoscoleces were aseptically removed from sheep hydatid cysts, washed twice with PBS and then cultivated in S.10E.H culture medium. The stages of parasite growth were observed using an inverted microscope for two months and all stages and behaviors were microscopically photographed. Different movies have also been made from these behavioral features.
Results: After around 55 days post cultivation, some evidences of behaviors simi-lar to self-mating (Type 2) and cross-mating were observed in some of the mature adult worms. However, fertile eggs in these parasites have never been observed.
Conclusion: Regarding the above observations, these parasites show tendency to unsuccessful self-mating/fertilization (type 2) which failure could be due to ana-tomical position and physiological maturation. Also lack of suitable conditions for self-fertilization causes the worms try to do unsuccessful cross- mating/fertilization in culture media.
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Background: There has never been a single case report of any parasitic zoono-sis in Ile-Ife while just a case of human Acanthocephalan infection in Nigeria is available.
Methods: Fifty (house–rats) Rattus rattus (Linnaeus, 1758) were caught in houses and raw food sellers’ stalls in a market in Ile-Ife. A caught rat was removed from the cage and sacrificed by cervical jerking. A rat was weighed, measured, quickly following which thick and thin blood films on microscope slides were made from blood collected from the tail vein. The rat was examined for ectoparasites then dissected to check for endoparasites.
Results: Two ectoparasites (Xenopsylla cheopis and Laelaptid mite) were recovered from 19 (38.0%) of the rats. Five genera of helminthes (Moniliformis, Hymenolepis, Taenia, Trichuris and Trichinella) were recovered from 29 (58.0%) of the rats while seven genera of protozoa organisms (Amoeba, Dientamoeba, Entamoeba, Retortamo-nas, Trichomonas, Chilomastix and Trypanosoma) were recovered from 48 (96.0%) of them. There was no correlation (Spearman’s correlation coefficient = -0.111) between the weight of the individual rat and the total number of alimentary canal acquired parasites.
Conclusion: In relation to human health, implications of the rats serving as res-ervoir hosts for the different pathogens are highlighted. In view of the possibility of unexpected zoonosis arising from the parasites found in the peridomestic rats in this investigation and others not found, and in view of the difficulties that may be associated with diagnosing such ailment, especially by a clinician who trained locally, this report should be like raising awareness to these salient facts.
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Amoebic liver abscess is a complication of amoebiasis that needs early diagnosis and proper treatment before further complications occur. We report a-35 year old female presented by fever and dyspnea due to huge liver abscess complicated by massive right side empyema. The patient was effectively treated by percutaneous drainage for both the right lobe abscess and empyema together with pharmaco-logic agents.
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Lymphatic filariasis (LF), a nematode disease transmitted by arthropod vectors, is repeatedly reported in immigrant population. This disease is not endemic in Iran; however, different species of mosquitoes, capable of transmission of parasite mi-crofilaria, are distributed in the country. Hereby, incidental detection of an im-ported case of LF due to Wuchereria bancrofti in an Indian worker in Iran is reported. Identification of the case was performed based on morphological and morphomet-rical characteristics of microfilaria and PCR sequencing.
