Guy Robinson , Gregorio Pérez-Cordón , Clare Hamilton , Frank Katzer , Lisa Connelly , Claire L. Alexander , Rachel M. Chalmers
{"title":"Validation of a multilocus genotyping scheme for subtyping Cryptosporidium parvum for epidemiological purposes","authors":"Guy Robinson , Gregorio Pérez-Cordón , Clare Hamilton , Frank Katzer , Lisa Connelly , Claire L. Alexander , Rachel M. Chalmers","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00151","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00151","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Subtyping <em>Cryptosporidium parvum</em> for outbreak investigations or epidemiological surveillance usually relies on DNA sequence analysis of a gene coding for a 60 KDa glycoprotein (<em>gp60</em>). Although <em>gp60</em> can be useful for allelic discrimination and to help investigate sources and routes of transmission, the presence of common subtypes and recombination during the parasite's sexual life-cycle demand a multilocus-based method for more discriminatory genotyping. While whole genome sequencing would provide the ultimate approach, it is a time consuming and expensive option for faecal parasites such as <em>Cryptosporidium</em> that occur at low density and are difficult to propagate routinely. In this study, we selected and evaluated a panel of previously identified variable-number tandem-repeat (VNTR) markers, to establish a multilocus genotyping scheme based on fragment sizing, appropriate for inter-laboratory surveillance and outbreak investigations. Seven VNTR markers were validated <em>in vitro</em> and demonstrated typeability of 0.85 and discriminatory power of 0.99. The discriminatory power was much greater than the currently used <em>gp60</em> sequencing (0.74), which identified 26 subtypes, compared to 100 different MLVA profiles within the same sample set. The assay was robust, with repeatable results and reproducibility across three laboratories demonstrating the scheme was suitable for inter-laboratory comparison of <em>C. parvum</em> subtypes. As the majority of genotypes (79%) were unique among epidemiologically unrelated samples, there was efficiency to infer linkage, and epidemiological concordance was observed in historical outbreaks. We propose that the multilocus variable number of tandem repeats analysis scheme is suitable to assist outbreak investigations.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00151"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000087/pdfft?md5=78fb0656f2679905f655e9b78aac427a&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000087-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44180005","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
María Ángeles Gómez-Morales, Simona Cherchi, Alessandra Ludovisi
{"title":"Serological testing for Trichinella infection in animals and man: Current status and opportunities for advancements","authors":"María Ángeles Gómez-Morales, Simona Cherchi, Alessandra Ludovisi","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00165","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00165","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Serological tests are widely used for the detection of <em>Trichinella</em> spp. infections in animals and humans. Despite some limitations, (such as low sensitivity in the early period after infection) ELISA and western blot testing have demonstrated good performance when excretory/secretory products from muscle larvae are used as antigens in agreement with the International Commission on Trichinellosis. Over recent decades, considerable progress has been made in the characterization of <em>Trichinella</em>-derived molecules in the hope of improving diagnosis, mainly during the early days post infection. Despite these efforts, validated tests using characterized antigens for early diagnosis are still not available. However, combining currently available sero-diagnostic tools with clinical and epidemiological data provides valuable information on <em>Trichinella</em> infections in humans and animals as shown in this review.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00165"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000221/pdfft?md5=718250a9b4bc6f028e20bc99b7bda5ed&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000221-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43703341","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Eskild Petersen , Valeria Meroni , Daniel V. Vasconcelos-Santos , Laurent Mandelbrot , Francois Peyron
{"title":"Congenital toxoplasmosis: Should we still care about screening?","authors":"Eskild Petersen , Valeria Meroni , Daniel V. Vasconcelos-Santos , Laurent Mandelbrot , Francois Peyron","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00162","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00162","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Prenatal systematic screening for congenital toxoplasmosis has been performed in Austria and France since 1975 and neonatal screening for congenital toxoplasmosis has been part of the New England Newborn screening program since 1986.</p><p>In this narrative review we review the data leading up to the systematic screening programs in Austria and France, highlighting the main finding of the European Union funded research in the 1990s and early 2000s. Different descriptive studies of the effect of pre- or postnatal treatment are discussed. <em>Toxoplasma gondii</em> has different genetic lineages with different pathogenicity in humans. This means that results in areas with a low pathogenic lineage cannot be extrapolated to an area with highly pathogenic lineages. The importance of meat as a source of infection is discussed in the light of an increased prevalence of <em>T.gondii</em> in organic livestock production .</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00162"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9249550/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"40567126","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Is Cryptosporidium a hijacker able to drive cancer cell proliferation?","authors":"Gabriela Certad","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00153","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00153","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The pathophysiological mechanisms of <em>Cryptosporidium</em> infection are multifactorial and not completely understood. Some advances achieved recently revealed that the infection by <em>Cryptosporidium parvum</em> induces cytoskeleton remodeling and actin reorganization through the implication of several intracellular signals involving, for example, PI3K, Src, Cdc42 and GTPases. It has also been reported that the infection by <em>C. parvum</em> leads to the activation of NF-κβ, known to induce anti-apoptotic mechanisms and to transmit oncogenic signals to epithelial cells. Despite the growing evidence about the hijacking of cellular pathways, potentially being involved in cancer onset, this information has rarely been linked to the tumorigenic potential of the parasite. However, several evidences support an association between <em>Cryptosporidium</em> infection and the development of digestive neoplasia. To explore the dynamics of <em>Cryptosporidium</em> infection, an animal model of cryptosporidiosis using corticoid dexamethasone-treated adult SCID (severe combined immunodeficiency) mice, orally infected with <em>C. parvum</em> or <em>Cryptosporidium muris</em> oocysts was implemented. <em>C. parvum</em>-infected animals developed digestive adenocarcinoma. When mechanisms involved in this neoplastic process were explored, the pivotal role of the Wnt pathway together with the alteration of the cytoskeleton was confirmed. Recently, a microarray assay allowed the detection of cancer-promoting genes and pathways highly up regulated in the group of <em>C. parvum</em> infected animals when compared to non-infected controls. Moreover, different human cases/control studies reported significant higher prevalence of <em>Cryptosporidium</em> infection among patients with recently diagnosed colon cancer before any treatment when compared to the control group (patients without colon neoplasia but with persistent digestive symptoms). These results suggest that <em>Cryptosporidium</em> is a potential oncogenic agent involved in cancer development beyond the usual suspects. If <em>Cryptosporidium</em> is able to hijack signal transduction, then is very likely that this contributes to transformation of its host cell. More research in the field is required in order to identify mechanisms and molecular factors involved in this process and to develop effective treatment interventions.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00153"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000105/pdfft?md5=3b7c32239b58a8c203b11320a9689d8e&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000105-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41264241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Simple Alcohol-based Method of Oocyst Inactivation for Use in the Development of Detection Assays for Cryptosporidium","authors":"Biniam Hagos, Robert E. Molestina","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00163","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00163","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><em>Cryptosporidium spp.</em> are obligate, intracellular parasites that cause life-threatening diarrhea among children and immunocompromised adults. Transmission occurs by the fecal-oral route following ingestion of thick-walled oocysts that can contaminate, persist, and resist disinfection in water and food. Sodium hypochlorite, peroxides, ozone, formaldehyde, and ammonia are suitable disinfectants against <em>Cryptosporidium</em> oocysts. Effective concentrations of these chemicals can be toxic and not practical for downstream research use of non-viable oocysts. Oocyst inactivation approaches such as UV light, heat, and treatments with ethanol or methanol are generally more accessible for routine lab use, yet their applicability in <em>Cryptosporidium</em> assay development is limited. The aims of this study were to evaluate methods of inactivation of <em>Cryptosporidium</em> oocysts that can be readily applied in the laboratory and test the utility of whole inactive oocysts in quantitative PCR (qPCR). Experiments were performed on <em>C. parvum</em> oocysts subjected to heat (75 °C/10 min) or treated with increasing concentrations of ethanol and methanol over time. Viability assays based on propidium iodide (PI) staining, <em>in vitro</em> excystation, and infection of the Hct-8 cell line were used to evaluate the efficacies of the treatments. Excystation of sporozoites was not impaired with 24 h exposures of oocysts to 50% ethanol or methanol, even though significant PI incorporation was observed. Concentrations of ≥70% of these chemicals were required to completely inhibit excystation and infection of Hct-8 cells <em>in vitro</em>. Inactivated oocysts stored for up to 30 days at 4 °C retained cyst wall integrity and antigenicity as observed by light microscopy and immunofluorescence. Moreover, non-viable oocysts applied directly in qPCR assays of the COWP gene were useful reference reagents for the identification and quantification of <em>Cryptosporidium</em> in spiked water samples. In summary, we have established a practical approach to inactivate <em>C. parvum</em> oocysts in the laboratory that is suitable for the development of detection or diagnostic assays targeting the parasite.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00163"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/f5/25/main.PMC9249555.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"40567124","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
G. Marucci , D. Tonanzi , M. Interisano , P. Vatta , F. Galati , G. La Rosa
{"title":"The International Trichinella Reference Centre database. Report on thirty-three years of activity and future perspectives","authors":"G. Marucci , D. Tonanzi , M. Interisano , P. Vatta , F. Galati , G. La Rosa","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00156","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00156","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The International Trichinella Reference Centre (ITRC) is the official laboratory of the International Commission on Trichinellosis, of the World Organization for Animal Health and of the European Union Reference Laboratory for Parasites. The ITRC was established in 1988 as a repository of <em>Trichinella</em> strains and a source of reference materials and information for international scientific research. To date, more than 8000 <em>Trichinella</em> isolates collected throughout the world have been identified at the species or genotype level by the ITRC staff and the information has been stored in a freely accessible database providing the largest collection of data available for scientists involved in the systematics and epidemiology of this parasite. This paper presents a summary of the data collected over 33 years of activity and describes the database functionalities. It finally advocates the potential of the database to improve knowledge of the epidemiology and taxonomy of <em>Trichinella</em>, which in turn may help the international surveillance of <em>Trichinella</em> species.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00156"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000130/pdfft?md5=5b69b17cb491cc378133b8e2ea85022c&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000130-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43719404","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The impact of globalization and climate change on Trichinella spp. epidemiology","authors":"Edoardo Pozio","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00154","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00154","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The main reservoir hosts of nematodes of the genus <em>Trichinella</em> are wild carnivores, although most human infections are caused by the consumption of pork. This group of zoonotic parasites completes the entire natural life cycle within the host organism. However, there is an important phase of the cycle that has only been highlighted in recent years and which concerns the permanence of the infecting larvae in the striated muscles of the host carcasses waiting to be ingested by a new host. To survive in this unique biological niche, <em>Trichinella</em> spp. larvae have developed an anaerobic metabolism for their survival in rotting carcasses and, for some species, a resistance to freezing for months or years in cold regions. Climate changes with increasingly temperatures and reduction of environmental humidity lower the survival time of larvae in host carcasses. In addition, environmental changes affect the biology and ecology of the main host species, reducing their number and age composition due to natural habitat fragmentation caused by increasing human settlements, extensive monocultures, increasing number of food animals, and reduction of trophic chains and biodiversity. All of these factors lead to a reduction in biological and environmental complexity that is the key to the natural host-parasite balance. In conclusion, <em>Trichinella</em> nematodes can be considered as an indicator of a health natural ecosystem.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00154"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000117/pdfft?md5=c0f2bc14550325a7dd60b9bec8ca7841&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000117-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45663847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Damien Costa , Romy Razakandrainibe , Louise Basmaciyan , Jérôme Raibaut , Pascal Delaunay , Florent Morio , Gilles Gargala , Venceslas Villier , Abdelmounaim Mouhajir , Bernard Levy , Catherine Rieder , Sébastien Larreche , Sophie Lesthelle , Noémie Coron , Estelle Menu , Magalie Demar , Vincent Pommier de Santi , Véronique Blanc , Stéphane Valot , Frédéric Dalle , Loic Favennec
{"title":"A summary of cryptosporidiosis outbreaks reported in France and overseas departments, 2017–2020","authors":"Damien Costa , Romy Razakandrainibe , Louise Basmaciyan , Jérôme Raibaut , Pascal Delaunay , Florent Morio , Gilles Gargala , Venceslas Villier , Abdelmounaim Mouhajir , Bernard Levy , Catherine Rieder , Sébastien Larreche , Sophie Lesthelle , Noémie Coron , Estelle Menu , Magalie Demar , Vincent Pommier de Santi , Véronique Blanc , Stéphane Valot , Frédéric Dalle , Loic Favennec","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00160","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00160","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><em>Cryptosporidium</em> is a known foodborne pathogen, ranked fifth out of 24 among foodborne parasites in terms of importance and a cause of many cryptosporidiosis outbreaks worldwide. In France, very few outbreaks were reported before 2017, and data recently obtained by the Expert Laboratory of the Cryptosporidiosis National Reference Center (CNR-LE-Cryptosporidiosis) have shown that outbreaks are in fact common and frequently underreported. In this work, we aim to report the characteristics of outbreaks detected in France during the period 2017–2020 and present a summary of investigations carried out by the CNR-LE-Cryptosporidiosis. During the study period, there were eleven cryptosporidiosis outbreaks, including three with no identified origin. Among the eight identified outbreaks: six were due to water contamination (five tap water and one recreational water), one was due to direct contact with infected calves, and one was due to consumption of contaminated curd cheese. Among these outbreaks, five of them exceeded one hundred cases. Recent results obtained by the CNR-LE-Cryptosporidiosis revealed the multiannual occurrence of <em>Cryptosporidium</em> outbreaks in France. Waterborne outbreaks were more frequently detected, while foodborne outbreaks which are more difficult to detect were likely underreported.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00160"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000178/pdfft?md5=0573e35d96e5c32ff91f45b1103735a2&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000178-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46656472","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Molecular detection of Toxoplasma gondii in chicken hearts from markets and retail stores in Northern Iran","authors":"Somayeh Abbaszadeh , Aref Teimouri , Mohammad Reza Mahmoudi , Zahra Atrkar Roushan , Nayereh Hajipour , Bijan Majidi-Shad , Meysam Sharifdini","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00166","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00166","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Detection of <em>Toxoplasma gondii</em> in chicken products indicates risk of transmission to consumers. The objective of the current study was to investigate the molecular prevalence of <em>T. gondii</em> in free-ranging and industrial chickens in Guilan province, Northern Iran. A total of 150 chicken heart samples including 75 free-range and 75 industrial chickens were collected from farmers' markets and chicken retailers in Guilan, Northern Iran, between October 2017 and August 2018. Genomic DNA were extracted from samples and examined for evidence of <em>T. gondii</em> using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting the B1 gene. The B1-positive samples were further analyzed by nested-PCR for SAG1 gene. Of the 150 samples, <em>T. gondii</em> DNA fragments were detected in 59 (39.3%), including 30 (40%) free-range and 29 (38.7%) industrial chicken. No significant differences of <em>T. gondii</em> DNA detection was observed between the free-range and industrial chicken samples (<em>p</em> = 0.73). Four selected positive samples were used for amplifying and sequencing of the SAG1 gene. The results revealed that all four sequences of SAG1 had 100% similarity with <em>T. gondii</em> sequences previously isolated from an AIDS/HIV patient in Mazandaran province, Northern Iran. Furthermore, the phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that all four sequences were closely related to Type I of <em>T. gondii</em>. However, our Type I identification is preliminary and needs to be confirmed by further multilocus sequence typing (MLST) analysis. The findings of the present study provide new data about the presence of <em>T. gondii</em> DNA in chicken hearts in the study area. These results confirm that chicken can be used as sentinels for environment contamination; however, further studies are needed to determine the viability of <em>T. gondii</em> in chicken hearts from Iran for risk assessment.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00166"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/6c/e3/main.PMC9249558.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"40567125","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}