Isolation and Genotyping of Acanthamoeba Strains from Soil Sources from Jamaica,West Indies |
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| Authors: | Cheridah D Todd María Reyes‐Batlle Carmen Mª Martín‐Navarro Alexis Dorta‐Gorrín Atteneri López‐Arencibia Enrique Martínez‐Carretero José E Piñero Basilio Valladares John F Lindo Jacob Lorenzo‐Morales |
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| Institution: | 1. University Institute of Tropical Diseases and Public Health of the Canary Islands, University of La Laguna, Canary Islands, Spain;2. Department of Microbiology, University of the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica |
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| Abstract: | Acanthamoeba spp. are opportunistic pathogens that are ubiquitous in nature. Many species of this genus are responsible for a fatal encephalitis and keratitis in humans and other animals. Seventy‐two soil samples were collected from the parishes across Jamaica and assessed for the presence of Acanthamoeba spp. Cultivation was carried out on non‐nutrient agar plates seeded with heat killed Escherichia coli. PCR and sequencing of the DF3 region were carried out in order to genotype the isolated strains of Acanthamoeba. Thermotolerance and osmotolerance assays were utilized to investigate the pathogenic potential of the Acanthamoeba isolates. Acanthamoeba spp. was isolated from 63.9% of soil samples. Sequencing of the DF3 region of the 18S rDNA resulted in the identification of genotypes T4, T5, and T11. T4 genotype was most frequently isolated. Most isolates were thermotolerant or both thermotolerant and osmotolerant, indicating that they may present the potential to cause disease in humans and other animals. |
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| Keywords: | Acanthamoeba spp genotype |
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