Parasites, Hosts and Diseases

The Korea Society for Parasitology and Tropical Medicine (대한기생충학·열대의학회)
권호 표지

Acanthamoeba sohi, n. sp., a pathogenic Korean isolate YM-4 from a freshwater fish

  • Im, Kyung-Il (Department of Parasitology and Institute of Tropical Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Shin, Ho-Joon (Department of Microbiology, Ajou University School of Medicine)
  • Published : 2003.12.01
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

A new species of Acanthamoeba was isolated from a freshwater fish in Korea and tentatively named Acanthamoeba sp. YM-4 (Korean isolate YM-4). The trophozoites were $11.0-23.0{\;}{\mu\textrm{m}}$ in length and had hyaline filamentous projections. Cysts were similar to those of A. culbertsoni and A. royreba, which were previously designated as Acanthamoeba group III. Acanthamoeba YM-4 can survive at $40^{\circ}C$, and its generation time was 19.6 hr, which was longer than that of A. culbertsoni. In terms of the in vitro cytotoxicity of lysates, Acanthamoeba YM-4 was weaker than A. culbertsoni, but stronger than A. polyphaga. On the basis of the mortality of experimentally infected mice, Acanthamoeba YM-4 was found to be highly virulent. The isoenzymes profile of Acanthamoeba YM-4 was similar to that of A. royreba. An anti-Acanthamoeba YM-4 monoclonal antibody, McAY7, was found to react only with Acanthamoeba YM-4, and not with A. culbertsoni. Random amplified polymorphic DNA marker analysis and RFLP analysis of mitochondrial DNA and of 18S small subunit ribosomal RNA, placed Acanthamoeba YM-4 in a separate cluster on the basis of phylogenetic distances. Thus the Acanthamoeba Korean isolate YM-4 was identified as a new species, and assigned as Acanthamoeba sohi.

Keywords

References

  1. Bogler SA, Zarley CD, Burianek LL, Fuerst PA, Byers TJ (1983) Interstrain mitochondrial DNA polymorphism detected in Acanthamoeba by restriction endonuclease analysis. Mol Biochem Parasitol 8: 145-163.
  2. Chung DI, Yu HS, Hwang MY, et al. (1998) Subgenus classification of Acanthamoeba by riboprinting. Korean J Parasitol 36: 69-80.
  3. De Jonckheere J (1983) Isoenzyme and total protein analysis by agarose isoelectric focusing and toxonomy of the genus Acanthamoeba. J Protozool 30: 701-706.
  4. Han KS, Min DY, Soh CT (1982) Study on isoenzyme patterns of free-living Amoebae, Acanthamoeba species. Yonsei J Med Sci 15: 75-86.
  5. Hong YP, Oh SH, La MS, Im KI (1995) Genetic status of Acanthamoeba spp. Korean isolates on the basis of RAPD markers. Korean J Parasitol 33: 341-348.
  6. Im KI, Shin HJ, Hong YP (1994) Acanthamoeba sohi n. sp. (Family Acanthamoebidae); a new species isolated in Korea with genomic DNA study. Program and Abstracts of the 36th Annual Meeting of The Korean Society for Parasitology. Korea. p18.
  7. Im KI, Shin HJ, Seo DW, Jeon SH, Kim TE (1999) Pathogenicity of Korean isolates of Acanthamoeba by observing the experimental infection and zymodemes of five isoenzymes. Korean J Parasitol 37: 85-92.
  8. Kong HH, Park JH, Chung DI (1995) Interstrain polymorphisms of isoenzyme profiles and mitochondrial DNA fingerprints among seven strains assigned to Acanthamoeba polyphaga. Korean J Parasitol 33:331-340.
  9. Kong HH, Chung DI (2002) A riboprinting scheme for identification of unknown Acanthamoeba isolates at species level. Korean J Parasitol 40: 25-31.
  10. Ma P, Visvesvara GS, Martinez AJ, Theodore FH, Daggett PM, Sawyer TK (1990) Naegleria and Acanthamoeba infections: Review. Rev Inf Dis 12: 490-513.
  11. Moura H, Wallace S, Visvesvara GS (1992) Acanthamoeba healyi N. sp. and the isoenzyme and immunoblot profiles of Acanthamoeba spp., Group 1 and 3. J Protozool 39: 573-583.
  12. Page FC (1967) Redefinition of the genus Acanthamoeba with description of three species. J Protozool 14: 709-724.
  13. Page FC (1976) An Illustrated Key to Freshwater and Soil Amoebae. Ambleside, Cumbria: Freshwater Biological Association, Scientific Publication No. 34.
  14. Pussard M (1966) Le genre Acanthamoeba Volkonsky 1931 (Hartmannellidae-Amoebida). Protistologica 2: 71-93.
  15. Pussard M, Pons R (1977) Morphologie de la paroi kystique et taxonomic du genre Acanthamoeba (Protozoa, Amoebida). Protistologica 13: 557-598.
  16. Sawyer TK, Griffin JL (1975) A proposed new family, Acanthamoebidae n. fam. (order Amoebida), for certain cyst-forming filose amoebae. Trans Am Microsc Soc 94:93-98.
  17. Shin HJ, Kim CH, Im KI (1992a) Immunological approach for classification of free-living amoeba in Korea. Korean J Parasitol 30: 289-298.
  18. Shin HJ, Im KI (1992b) Analysis of antigenic specificities of Naegleria fowleri using EITB. Yonsei Rep Trop Med 23: 9-13.
  19. Shin HJ, La MS, Im KI (1993) Cytotoxicity of Acanthamoeba sp. YM-4 (Korean isolate). Yonsei Rep Trop Med 24: 31-38.
  20. Shin HJ, Im KI (1996) Restriction site maps of mitochondrial DNA for Acanthamoeba strain in Korea. Ajou Med J 1: 163-168.
  21. Shin HJ, Im KI, Jeon KW (1997) Restriction endonuclease analysis of mitochondrial DNA of Acanthamoeba sp. YM-4 (Korean isolate). Korean J Parasitol 35: 119-125.
  22. Shin HJ, Ji YJ, Cho MS, Kim HI, Park YH, Im KI (1998) Molecular approach on classification of Acanthamoeba Korean isolates using 18S-srRNA analysis. Ajou Med J 3:122-130.
  23. Visvesvara GS, Balamuth W (1975) Comparative studies on related free-living and pathogenic amoebae with special reference to Acanthamoeba. J Protozool 22: 245-56.