title: Molecular prevalence of Entamoeba histolytica/dispar infection among patients attending four health centres in north-west Ethiopia.
abstract: The prevalence of amoebiasis is often overestimated owing to its epidemiological overlap with the non-pathogenic Entamoeba dispar To provide evidence for this conjecture, a cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2013 to January 2015. A range of 180-200 µg of semi-solid and formed stools and 200 µL of diarrhoeic stool samples were used for DNA extraction from microscopically E. histolytica/dispar positive samples using the QIAamp® DNA Stool Mini Kit according to manufacturers' instructions. Nested PCR targeting 18S ribosomal RNA gene was used. In 422 microscopically positive E. histolytica/dispar stools, molecular prevalence revealed that E. histolytica infestation was present in only 1.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.47-2.93) and E. dispar was found in 42.2% (95% CI, 37.49-46.91), while 56.2% (95% CI, 51.47-60.93) had neither E. histolytica nor E. dispar (P < 0.001). We conclude that infestation with E. histolytica is rarer in our study areas than was previously believed. Hence, accurate differentiation of E. histolytica and E. dispar is crucial.
authors.affiliation: Medical Parasitologist; Lecturer, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Bahir Dar University yimermulat@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Mulat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yimer
authors.affiliation: Lecturer, College of Medicine, Bahir Dar University and Health Sciences and tropical infectious diseases.
authors.forename: Yohannes
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zenebe
authors.affiliation: Medical Microbiologist; Lecturer, College of Medicine, Bahir Dar University and Health Sciences.
authors.forename: Wondemagegn
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Mulu
authors.affiliation: Medical Microbiologist; Lecturer, College of Medicine and Health Sciences.
authors.forename: Bayeh
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Abera
authors.affiliation: Carlos III Institute of health, Madrid, Spain, Laboratory officer at Department of amoebiasis.
authors.forename: José M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Saugar
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004747:Entamoeba / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004749:Entamoebiasis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology; D006801:Humans; D009819:Office Visits; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015995:Prevalence
keywords: Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar; Ethiopia; molecular prevalence