Molecular confirmation of Sappinia pedata as a causative agent of amoebic encephalitis.
Pathogenic free-living amoebae, such as Acanthamoeba species, Balamuthia mandrillaris, and Naegleria fowleri, are known to cause infections of the central nervous system in human and other animals. In 2001, a case of human encephalitis was reported that was caused by another amoeba with morphological features suggestive of Sappinia. The amoeba originally identified as Sappinia diploidea was identified, most likely as S. pedata, by use of newly developed real-time polymerase chain reaction assays. This amoeba had previously been found only in environmental sources, such as soil and tree bark. The results illustrate the potential for other free-living amoebae, which are not normally associated with human disease, to cause occasional infections.
Qvarnstrom
Yvonne
Y
Division of Parasitic Disease, National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne, and Enteric Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia 30341, USA.
da Silva
Alexandre J
AJ
Schuster
Frederick L
FL
Gelman
Benjamin B
BB
Visvesvara
Govinda S
GS
D000328:Adult; D000562:Amebiasis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology*; D016841:Amoebida / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D000818:Animals; D020807:Central Nervous System Parasitic Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology*; D004660:Encephalitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*