Tropical Parasitology

CONTEXT: Resistance to antimalarial drugs is one of the major challenges for malaria elimination. In India, artemisinin combination therapy (artesunate-sulfadoxin pyrimethamine) was introduced in place of chloroquine (CQ) for the treatment of uncomplicated falciparum malaria in 2010. Periodical monitoring of polymorphisms in antimalarial drug resistance marker genes will be useful for assessing drug pressure, mapping and monitoring of drug resistance status; and will be helpful for searching alternative treatments...

Parasitic diseases, including malaria, leishmaniasis, and trypanosomiasis, continue to plague populations worldwide, particularly in resource-limited settings and disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations. It has limited the use of conventional health-care delivery and disease control approaches and necessitated exploring innovative strategies. In this direction, artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative tool with immense promise in parasitic disease control, offering the potential for enhanced diagnostics, precision drug discovery, predictive modeling, and personalized treatment...

BACKGROUND: Various genotypes of Echinococcus granulosus have been studied in high-disease-risk areas and identified as causative agents of cystic echinococcosis (CE). This study was performed to examine and identify the molecular hydatid cyst in the dissected human specimens in paraffin tissue, and the dissected animal cyst was characterized using the DNA polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) of internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1). MATERIALS AND METHODS: To determine the molecular properties of E...

This case report presents a perplexing case of Plasmodium malariae breakthrough infection despite prophylaxis with appropriate antimalarial prophylactic regimen of mefloquine in a compliant patient. A 78-year-old missionary who travels each year to the African subcontinent for multiple weeks to months, over 25 years, adheres to stringent antimalarial prophylaxis with Mefloquine as prescribed, starting prior to the trip and continuing after the return to the U.S.A. She gave no prior history of malaria during her 25 years of travel to Africa and back...

Rhinosporidiosis is a rarely encountered granulomatous infection caused by Rhinosporidium seeberi affecting both humans and animals. Although the disease has been reported worldwide, it is mainly endemic in tropical and subtropical countries. In the Indian subcontinent, it is endemic in some parts like Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, eastern Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh. It is a chronic granulomatous disease with varied controversial taxonomical history, but recently based on genetic sequencing and the nature of aquatics, it was later identified as an aquatic eukaryote...

BACKGROUND: Giardia intestinalis is an intestinal protozoan which commonly causes parasitic gastroenteritis globally. It is a species complex consisting of at least eight assemblages (genotypes). In India, Giardia is mostly underreported and missed in asymptomatic cases. AIM: The aim of this study was to genotype the G. intestinalis isolates from stool samples of patients at a tertiary care center in Rajasthan, India, and to clinically correlate it. METHODS: This prospective pilot cross-sectional study was conducted from 2019 to 2021 in a tertiary care center in western India...

Cryptosporidium is an apicomplexan parasite that causes gastrointestinal disease in a wide variety of hosts and is associated with waterborne outbreaks. Nonetheless, the parasite is underdiagnosed. Cryptosporidium has been proposed as an etiological cause of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in several studies. However, the exact mechanism of pathogenesis is unknown, and no direct link has been discovered. This review will discuss several parasite-induced modifications, such as immunological, microbiome, and metabolite modifications, as well as their interactions...

Cryptosporidium species cause watery diarrhea in several vertebrate hosts, including humans. Most apparently, immunocompetent-infected individuals remain asymptomatic, whereas immunocompromised may develop severe or chronic cryptosporidiosis. We report here the case of a 6-year-old girl undergoing chemotherapy for Burkitt lymphoma who experienced multiple episodes of watery diarrhea during her hospital stay. Microscopic examination of her stool sample revealed oocysts of Cryptosporidium species. The rapid immunochromatographic test was also positive for Cryptosporidium species...

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A 35 year old farmer presented with an erythematous serpiginous rash on dorsal aspect of left foot with intense pruritus and a feeling of something moving slowly in the rash. The photo of the rash is presented below and the case is discussed further.

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PURPOSE: As we edge closer to the eradication of malaria, several methods for detecting Plasmodium species have been developed, including peripheral blood smear examination (PBS), rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), serological evaluations, fluorescent microscopy, polymerase chain reactions (PCRs), fluorescent in situ hybridization, and flow cytometry. The suitability of these tools for routine diagnosis requires evaluation, considering both their diagnostic accuracy and cost-effectiveness...

Human dirofilariasis is a rare infection caused by filarial worms of genus Dirofilaria . Humans may be infected as aberrant (accidental) hosts, mainly by Dirofilaria repens and Dirofilaria immitis . Most of the cases reported in India are of ocular dirofilariasis, with a few reports on subcutaneous dirofilariasis. We hereby report one such case of human subcutaneous dirofilariasis affecting the neck region of a 63-year male patient from Assam. This case indicates that this infection is a potentially emerging zoonosis in Assam and there is scope of finding more such cases with surveillance...

Muscle hydatidosis is rare accounting only for 3%-5% of cases. Until now, only one case of muscular hydatidosis involving the infraspinatus muscle has been recorded. Hereby, we present a case report of primary hydatidosis of infraspinatus muscle in a 32-year-old woman from Central India who presented with painful soft-tissue swelling. Ultrasonography appearance was consistent with that of hydatid cyst; while serology was negative, pericystectomy was performed, and the diagnosis was confirmed. The patient was followed up for a period of 6 months, and no recurrence was noted...

BACKGROUND: Periodontal disease is often caused by bacterial plaque. However, there are indications that some infective agents, including parasites, may play important roles in the pathogenesis of the disease. AIM: This study aimed at assessing the prevalence of gingivitis and periodontitis, as well as the prevalence of Entamoeba gingivalis and Trichomonas tenax , in the oral biofilm of individuals with periodontal diseases using polymerase chain reaction. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred and six respondents with periodontal disease participated in the study...

Nonhuman primate (NHP) malaria poses a major threat to the malaria control programs. The last two decades have witnessed a paradigm shift in our understanding of the malaria caused by species other than the traditionally known human Plasmodium species - Plasmodium falciparum , Plasmodium vivax , Plasmodium malariae , and Plasmodium ovale . The emergence of the malaria parasite of long-tailed macaque monkeys, Plasmodium knowlesi , as the fifth malaria species of humans has made the scientific community consider the risk of other zoonotic malaria, such as Plasmodium cynomolgi , Plasmodium simium , Plasmodium inui , and others, to humans...

BACKGROUND: Ascariasis is a common disease in humans and pigs. In previous reports, it has been known that ascariasis in humans is not only caused by Ascaris lumbricoides but also by Ascaris suum which is known to originate from pigs. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This research aims to identify the species of Ascaris that infect traditional pig farmers in Bali, Indonesia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To achieve this, an observational study was conducted, in which 239 feces samples were collected from traditional pig farmers...

BACKGROUND: The complex life cycle of geohelminth parasites make it difficult to manage repeated infections that occur in endemic areas, that requires the development of new therapeutic strategies. Human hookworm Ancylostoma sp . and Necator sp . are a serious problem in many areas of the world where the old age anti-helminthics are ineffective. To address this, we have tried a non-traditional therapeutic approach for a sustainable solution to manage parasite infections. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: In this study, we attempted to develop a new type of therapy using value-added probiotics-producing antiparasitic RNA interference (RNAi) molecules against a vital hookworm ( Ancylostoma sp...

INTRODUCTION: Acanthamoeba spp . are free-living parasites increasingly implicated in causing Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK). AK is diagnosed by demonstration of parasites in corneal samples by direct microscopy, culture, and nucleic acid amplification. Most commonly, corneal scrapings are sent to the laboratory smeared between two glass slides. These scrapings are suitable for direct microscopy but less suitable for culture and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which, in turn, are more sensitive for the diagnosis of AK...

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