Proportions of D. folliculorum and D. brevis, and also symptoms of blepharitis were similar in the control group and immunocompromised patients. Immunosuppression did not seem to increase the rate of Demodex spp. infection.
Abstract. Blastocystis hominis is a common intestinal parasite found in humans living in poor sanitary conditions, living in tropical and subtropical climates, exposed to infected animals, or consuming contaminated food or water. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of B. hominis in Polish military personnel returning from peacekeeping missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. In total, 1,826 stool samples were examined. Gastrointestinal parasites were detected in 17% of the soldiers. The examined stool samples most frequently contained vacuolar forms of B. hominis (15.3%) and cysts of Entamoeba coli (1.0%) or Giardia lamblia (0.7%). In 97.1% of stool samples from infected soldiers, we observed less than five developmental forms of B. hominis in the field of view (40 + ). The parasite infections in soldiers were diagnosed in the autumn and the spring. There was no statistical correlation between age and B. hominis infection. Our results show that peacekeeping missions in countries with tropical or subtropical climates could be associated with risk for parasitic diseases, including blastocystosis.
Editor, T he ectoparasite Demodex folliculorum (Simon 1843) is most common parasite of humans. In the eye, D. folliculorum is found in the eyelash follicle. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of D. folliculorum in the eyelashes in patients with haematologic disorders.Eyelashes were collected from 95 patients of the Clinic of Haematology Pomeranian Medical University, Szczecin, Poland, and from 1091 healthy controls. There were 47 (49%) women and 48 (51%) men in the patients group (age range: 58.6 ± 13.1) and 759 (69.6%) women and 332 (30.4%) men in the control group (age range: 58.6 ± 13.0). From each patient, we aseptically collected two lashes from the upper right eyelid and two lashes from the upper left eyelid. The collected material was used in preparations examined using light microscopy (magnified 100 times). Infection of the examined subjects was confirmed by the detection of adult and larval forms of D. folliculorum.Demodex folliculorum is found in 21.8% of healthy controls and 18.9% of haematologic patients ( Fig. 1; Table 1).In the control group, D. folliculorum occurred in 22.3% of women and in 20.8% of men. In patients with haematologic disorders, D. folliculorum occurred in 17.5% of women and in 25% of men.
Nużeńce z rodzaju Demodex są roztoczami kosmopolitycznymi występującymi u wielu gatunków ssaków. U człowieka występują dwa gatunki: Demodex folliculorum (Simon, 1842) i Demodex brevis (Akbulatova, 1963), które różnią się morfologicznie. Do niedawna gatunki te traktowane były jako komensale, obecnie uznawane są za organizmy pasożytnicze. U ludzi nużeńce występują głównie w gruczołach łojowych skóry (głównie okolic czoła, policzków, nosa, okolic zausznych i dekoltu), w przewodach słuchowych oraz w owłosionej skórze głowy. Do zarażenia nużeńcami dochodzi przez m.in. kontakt bezpośredni, używanie wspólnej pościeli, ręczników, kremów czy innych kosmetyków. Pomimo dużego rozpowszechnienia Demodex spp. w populacji ludzkiej, objawy demodekozy występują niezbyt często, najczęściej u osób z obniżoną odpornością spowodowaną naturalnymi procesami w organizmie, jak starzenie, czy też współtowarzysząc niektórym chorobom.
The pathological process occurring within the central nervous system (CNS) as a result of the infection by Acanthamoeba spp. is not fully understood. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine whether Acanthamoeba spp. may affect the levels of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-2,-9), their tissue inhibitors (TIMP-1,-3) and MMP-9/TIMP-1, MMP-2/TIMP-3 ratios in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus, in relation to the host’s immunological status. Our results showed that Acanthamoeba spp. infection can change the levels of MMP and TIMP in the CNS and may be amenable targets for limiting amoebic encephalitis. The increase in the activity of matrix metalloproteinases during acanthamoebiasis may be primarily the result of inflammation process, probably an increased activity of proteolytic processes, but also (to a lesser extent) a defense mechanism preventing the processes of neurodegeneration.
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