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Molecular subtyping of Blastocystis sp. isolates from symptomatic patients in Italy

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Abstract

Blastocystis sp. is the most common eukaryotic parasite in the intestinal tract of humans. Due to its potential impact in public health, we determined the Blastocystis sp. subtypes (STs) and their relative frequency in symptomatic patients living in or in the vicinity of two Italian cities (Rome and Sassari). A total of 34 Blastocystis sp. isolates corresponding to 26 single and 4 mixed infections were subtyped using partial small subunit ribosomal RNA gene sequencing. From this molecular approach, the ST distribution in the present Italian population was as follows: ST3 (47.1%), ST2 (20.6%), ST4 (17.7%), ST1 (8.8%), and ST7, and ST8 (2.9%). As in almost all countries worldwide, ST3 was the most common ST reinforcing the hypothesis of its human origin. Together with a previous preliminary report, a total of seven STs (with the addition of ST5) have been found in Italian symptomatic patients. The wide range of STs identified in the Italian population suggest that Blastocystis sp. infection is not associated with specific STs even if some STs (ST1–ST4) are predominant as reported in all other countries. Since most of the STs identified in Italian patients are zoonotic, our data raise crucial questions concerning the identification of animal reservoirs for Blastocystis sp. and the potential risks of transmission to humans.

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Acknowledgments

This work was developed in the framework of the Center for Infection and Immunity of Lille and supported by the Institut Pasteur de Lille, the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, and the Université Lille Nord de France. DM and GS were supported by grants from the ERASMUS Program and Regione Autonoma della Sardegna.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Infection and Immunity of Lille (CIIL), Institut Pasteur of Lille, Inserm U1019, CNRS UMR 8204, University Lille Nord de France, Biology and Diversity of Emerging Eukaryotic Pathogens (BDEEP), 1 rue du Professeur Calmette, BP 245, 59019, Lille Cedex, France

    Dionigia Meloni, Giovanna Sanciu, Magali Chabé, Laurence Delhaes, Eduardo Dei-Cas & Eric Viscogliosi

  2. Department of Biomedical Sciences, Division of Experimental and Clinical Microbiology, University of Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43/B, 07100, Sassari, Italy

    Dionigia Meloni, Giovanna Sanciu & Pier Luigi Fiori

  3. Center for Biotechnology Development and Biodiversity Research, University of Sassari, 07100, Sassari, Italy

    Dionigia Meloni, Giovanna Sanciu & Pier Luigi Fiori

  4. Laboratoire Microorganismes: Génome et Environnement (LMGE), CNRS UMR 6023, University Blaise Pascal of Clermont-Ferrand, Avenue des Landais, 63177, Aubière Cedex, France

    Philippe Poirier, Hicham El Alaoui & Frederic Delbac

  5. Department of Public Health and Cell Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133, Rome, Italy

    David Di Cave

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  1. Dionigia Meloni
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  2. Giovanna Sanciu
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  10. David Di Cave
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  11. Eric Viscogliosi
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Correspondence to Eric Viscogliosi.

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Meloni, D., Sanciu, G., Poirier, P. et al. Molecular subtyping of Blastocystis sp. isolates from symptomatic patients in Italy. Parasitol Res 109, 613–619 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-011-2294-7

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