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Prevalence and Molecular Subtyping of Blastocystis from Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Chronic Urticaria in Iran

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Abstract

Background

Blastocystis is a parasite that colonizes in the human intestine. Its clinical features include diarrhea, abdominal pain, or urticarial and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Spite of being significant genetic diversity and numerous subtypes within the genus there were no associations between its subtypes and symptomatology.

Materials and Methods

Aim of this project was subtyping of the protozoa in 184 Iranian people with history of IBS/IBD (n = 74) or chronic urticaria (n = 59) and individuals referred to general clinic (n = 51). Microscopic and molecular examinations used for identifying and subtyping of Blastocystis.

Results

Overall, frequency of the parasite was 24.46% while, 29.41% of people who referred to general clinic, 20.27%, and 25.42% of IBS/IBD and urticarial cases were infected, respectively. Subtyping result showed that 28.89% of all people were infected with Blastocystis sp. while the prevalence of ST3, ST2 and ST1 were 22.22%, 22.22%, and 17.78%, respectively. Blastocystis sp., was identified in most IBS/IBD cases (46.7%) followed with ST2 and ST3 (13.3 and 13.3, respectively). Whereas, in chronic urticaria group ST2(33.3%) was the major subtype and most individuals in control group were infected with ST3 (33.3%). Pearson’s Chi Square test showed no significant differences between the parasite or subtype prevalence and diseases (p > 0.05).

Conclusion

Given significant factors have effect on clinical signs including host or parasite genetics, microbiota, as well as environmental factors, it seems that further studies are needed to find out different markers of host susceptibility to diverse parasite genotypes in patients with irritable bowel syndrome or urticaria.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a grant from the Kerman University of Medical Sciences Vice Chancellor for Research to ZB, under contract 93/61 (project no. 93/61 and Ethics no. IR. KMU. REC. 1393. 10). We thank patients and healthy people who participated in the project.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Parasitology, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran

    Giti Shirvani

  2. Research Center for Hydatid Disease in Iran, School of Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Majid Fasihi-Harandi & Mohammad Ali Mohammadi

  3. Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Omid Raiesi

  4. Department of Immunology and Allergy, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Nasrin Bazargan

  5. Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research Center, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Mohammad Javad Zahedi

  6. Department of Gastroenterology, Afzalipour Hospital, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Mohammad Javad Zahedi

  7. Leishmaniasis Research Center, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Iraj Sharifi & Zahra Babaei

  8. Department of Oncology, School of Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Behjat Kalantari-Khandani

  9. Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

    Maryam Nooshadokht, Hajar Shabandoust, Mohammad Ebrahimipour & Zahra Babaei

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  1. Giti Shirvani
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Contributions

Study concept and design: ZB, MFH. Collecting samples and preparing for experiment: GSh, HSh, and MJZ. Analysis and interpretation of data: ZB, ISh, BKK, MFH,. Drafting of the manuscript: ZB, OR and MAM. Critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: ZB, OR, MAM. Statistical analysis: MN, ME.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zahra Babaei.

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Shirvani, G., Fasihi-Harandi, M., Raiesi, O. et al. Prevalence and Molecular Subtyping of Blastocystis from Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Chronic Urticaria in Iran. Acta Parasit. 65, 90–96 (2020). https://doi.org/10.2478/s11686-019-00131-y

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