• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제57권2호
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• pp.93-99
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• 2019

Both Plasmodium spp. and Toxoplasma gondii are important apicomplexan parasites, which infect humans worldwide. Genetic analyses have revealed that 33% of amino acid sequences of inner membrane complex from the malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei is similar to that of Toxoplasma gondii. Inner membrane complex is known to be involved in cell invasion and replication. In this study, we investigated the resistance against T. gondii (ME49) infection induced by previously infected P. berghei (ANKA) in mice. Levels of T. gondii-specific IgG, IgG1, IgG2a, and IgG2b antibody responses, $CD4^+$ and $CD8^+$ T cell populations were found higher in the mice infected with P. berghei (ANKA) and challenged with T. gondii (ME49) compared to that in control mice infected with T. gondii alone (ME49). P. berghei (ANKA) + T. gondii (ME49) group showed significantly reduced the number and size of T. gondii (ME49) cysts in the brains of mice, resulting in lower body weight loss compared to ME49 control group. These results indicate that previous exposure to P. berghei (ANKA) induce resistance to subsequent T. gondii (ME49) infection.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제25권8호
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• pp.1246-1256
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• 2015

Chlamydophila psittaci is an important intracellular pathogen. Persistent infection is an important state of the host-parasite interaction in this chlamydial infection, which plays a significant role in spreading the organism within animal populations and in causing chronic chlamydiosis and serious sequelae. In this study, a C. psittaci persistent infection cell model was induced by penicillin G, and real-time quantitative PCR was used to study the transcriptional levels of 10 C. psittaci genes (dnaA, dnaK, ftsW, ftsY, grpE, rpsD, incC, omcB, CPSIT_0846, and CPSIT_0042) in acute and penicillin-G-induced persistent infection cultures. Compared with the acute cultures, the penicillin-G-treated cultures showed a reduced chlamydial inclusion size and a significantly decreased number of elementary body particles. Additionally, some enlarged aberrant reticulate body particles were present in the penicillin-G-treated cultures but not the acute ones. The expression levels of genes encoding products for cell division (FtsW, FtsY) and outer membrane protein E encoding gene (CPSIT_0042) were downregulated (p < 0.05) from 6 h post-infection onward in the persistent infection cultures. Also from 6 h post-infection, the expression levels of DnaA, DnaK, IncC, RpsD, GrpE, and CPSIT_0846 were upregulated (p < 0.05); however, the expression level of OmcB in the persistent infection was< almost the same as that in the acute infection (p > 0.05). These results provide new insight regarding molecular activities that accompany persistence of C. psittaci, which may play important roles in the pathogenesis of C. psittaci infection.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권16호
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• pp.6609-6612
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• 2014

Opisthorchis viverrini is an ongoing public health problem in Northeast Thailand. Despite continuous efforts for decades by healthcare organizations to overcome this problem, infection rates remain high. To enable related personnel to identify and address the various issues effectively, a cross-sectional study was performed to investigate prevalence and risk factors for opisthorchiasis. The target group was 3,916 Thai residents of Northeast Thailand who were 15 or over. Participants were recruited using the 30 clusters sampling technique. The data were gathered through questionnaires, focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, and stool examinations for parasite eggs (using the Modified Kato Katz method). The data were analyzed using descriptive and inference statistics; in order to ascertain the risk factors and test them using the odds ratio and multiple logistic regressions. The prevalence of opisthorchiasis was 22.7% (95%CI: 0.26 to 0.24). The province with the highest prevalence was Nakhorn Phanom (40.9%; female to male ratio =1:1.2). The age group with the highest prevalence was 40-49 year olds. All age groups had a prevalence >20%. Four of seven provinces had a prevalence >20%. The factors related to opisthorchiasis were (a) sex, (b) age (especially > 50), (c) proximity and duration living near a water body, and (d) eating raw and/or fermented fish. In order to reduce the prevalence of opisthorchiasis, the focus in populations living in upper Northeast Thailand should be changing their eating behaviors as appropriate to their tradition and context.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• 제22권3호
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• pp.40.1-40.12
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• 2021

Background: The microsporidian parasite Nosema ceranae is a global problem in honeybee populations and is known to cause winter mortality. A sensitive and rapid tool for stable quantitative detection is necessary to establish further research related to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of this pathogen. Objectives: The present study aimed to develop a quantitative method that incorporates ultra-rapid real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (UR-qPCR) for the rapid enumeration of N. ceranae in infected bees. Methods: A procedure for UR-qPCR detection of N. ceranae was developed, and the advantages of molecular detection were evaluated in comparison with microscopic enumeration. Results: UR-qPCR was more sensitive than microscopic enumeration for detecting two copies of N. ceranae DNA and 24 spores per bee. Meanwhile, the limit of detection by microscopy was 2.40 × 10⁴ spores/bee, and the stable detection level was ≥ 2.40 × 10⁵ spores/bee. The results of N. ceranae calculations from the infected honeybees and purified spores by UR-qPCR showed that the DNA copy number was approximately 8-fold higher than the spore count. Additionally, honeybees infected with N. ceranae with 2.74 × 10⁴ copies of N. ceranae DNA were incapable of detection by microscopy. The results of quantitative analysis using UR-qPCR were accomplished within 20 min. Conclusions: UR-qPCR is expected to be the most rapid molecular method for Nosema detection and has been developed for diagnosing nosemosis at low levels of infection.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제50권4호
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• pp.379-384
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• 2012

Resistance of Plasmodium spp. to anti-malarial drugs is the primary obstacle in the fight against malaria, and molecular markers for the drug resistance have been applied as an adjunct in the surveillance of the resistance. In this study, we investigated the prevalence of mutations in pvmdr1, pvcrt-o, pvdhfr, and pvdhps genes in temperate-zone P. vivax parasites from central China. A total of 26 isolates were selected, including 8 which were previously shown to have a lower susceptibility to chloroquine in vitro. For pvmdr1, pvcrt-o, and pvdhps genes, no resistance-conferring mutations were discovered. However, a highly prevalent (69.2%), single-point mutation (S117N) was found in pvdhfr gene. In addition, tandem repeat polymorphisms existed in pvdhfr and pvdhps genes, which warranted further studies in relation to the parasite resistance to antifolate drugs. The study further suggests that P. vivax populations in central China may still be relatively susceptible to chloroquine and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제51권4호
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• pp.449-452
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• 2013

Taenia pisiformis is one of the most important parasites of canines and rabbits. T. pisiformis cysticercus (the larval stage) causes severe damage to rabbit breeding, which results in huge economic losses. In this study, the genetic variation of T. pisiformis was determined in Sichuan Province, China. Fragments of the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) (922 bp) gene were amplified in 53 isolates from 8 regions of T. pisiformis. Overall, 12 haplotypes were found in these 53 cytb sequences. Molecular genetic variations showed 98.4% genetic variation derived from intra-region. $F_{ST}$ and Nm values suggested that 53 isolates were not genetically differentiated and had low levels of genetic diversity. Neutrality indices of the cytb sequences showed the evolution of T. pisiformis followed a neutral mode. Phylogenetic analysis revealed no correlation between phylogeny and geographic distribution. These findings indicate that 53 isolates of T. pisiformis keep a low genetic variation, which provide useful knowledge for monitoring changes in parasite populations for future control strategies.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제61권4호
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• pp.455-462
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• 2023

Since 2015, countries in the Sahel region have implemented large-scale seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC). However, the mass use of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) plus amodiaquine impacts the genetic diversity of malaria parasites and their sensitivity to antimalarials. This study aimed to describe and compare the genetic diversity and SP resistance of Plasmodium falciparum strains in Mali and Niger. We collected 400 blood samples in Mali and Niger from children aged 3-59 months suspected of malaria. Of them, 201 tested positive (Niger, 111, 55.2%; Mali, 90, 44.8%). Polymorphism of merozoite surface protein 1 (msp1) genetic marker showed 201 allotypes. The frequency of the RO33 allotype was significantly higher in Niger (63.6%) than in Mali (39.3%). There was no significant difference in the frequency of the K1 and MAD20 allotypes between the 2 countries. The multiplicity of infection was 2 allotypes per patient in Mali and one allotype per patient in Niger. The prevalence of strains with the triple mutants Pfdhfr51I/Pfdhfr59R/Pfdhps436A/F/H and Pfdhfr51I/Pfdhfr59R/Pfdhps437G was 18.1% and 30.2%, respectively, and 7.7% carried the quadruple mutant Pfdhfr51I/Pfdhfr59R/Pfdhps436A/F/H/Pfdhps437G. Despite the significant genetic diversity of parasite populations, the level of SP resistance was comparable between Mali and Niger. The frequency of mutations conferring resistance to SP still allows its effective use in intermittent preventive treatment in pregnant women and in SMC.

• 한국균학회지
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• 제26권4호통권87호
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• pp.413-415
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• 1998

국내 미기록 곤충병원성 곰팡이, Zoophthora phalloides를 1998년 6월경 수원 농업과학기술원 및 전남진흥원내의 망초에 기생하는 진딧물(Dactynotus sp.)에서 발견하였다. 이에 국내에서 처음으로 Z. phalloides를 보고하며, 형태적 특징을 기재한다. 이 균은 소세지 모양의 1차포자를 형성하는 것이 특징이며, 평균길이가 $28.98\;{\mu}m$이었다. 또한 1차포자에서는 두 종류의 2차 분생자병을 형성하였는데, 발아관처럼 짧고 굵거나 긴 막대모양을 띄었고, 각각의 분생자병 끝에서 2차포자가 만들어졌다.

• 한국균학회지
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• 제6권2호
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• pp.19-24
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• 1978

1976년(年) 9월(月) 일신품종계(日新品種係)인 수도(水稻)의 유유품종(維新品種)에 주(主)로 발생(發生)된 위조(萎凋)벼와 상자육균대(箱子育菌代) 및 답토양(畓土壤) 등(等) 대상(對象)으로 병해조사(病害調査) 열시(實施)한 결과(結果) Pythium spp와 몇가지 균핵(菌核) 병균류(病菌類)를 공리동정(公離同定)하였다. pythium속(屬) 가운데는 병원성(病原性)이 있고 고온(高溫)에서 잘자라는 Pythium aristosporum Vanterpool과 Pythium sp. Kythium myriotylum Drechsler 그리고 병원성(病原性)이 약(弱)하고 저온성(低溫性)으로 답토(畓土)에서 분리(分離)된 Pythium irregulare Buisman을 동정(同定) 균핵병균(菌核病菌)으로는 우리 나라의 병해목록(病害目錄)에는 미기록종(未記錄種)인 Sclerotivae hydrophilum(구상균씨병)(球狀菌核病)과 Sclerotium oryzae-sativae(복빛균)(福色核菌)였으며 이들 균핵병(菌核病)들의 병원성(病原性)을 보면 소립균핵병(小粒菌核病)이 강(强)한 편(便)이미 그외 균핵병(菌核病)들은 오래된 하부옆(下部葉)와 상병기생성(傷病寄生性)의 약(弱)한 병원성(病原性)을 보여주었다. 그러나 이들 균핵병(菌核病)의 분포(分布)는 답토양중(沓土壤中)에 상당(相當)한 밀도(密度)를 차지하고 있으므로 발생생태(發生生態)에 관(關)한 연구(硏究)가 이루어져야 할 것으로 믿는다.