Laboratory Diagnosis of Microsporidia

Ghosh, Kaya; Schwartz, David A.; Weiss, Louis M.

doi:10.1002/9781118395264.ch17

Cited by 12 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 209 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Brain lesions varied in severity between rabbits. The formation of glial nodules might be due to the chitin of endospore microsporidians as chitin is chemotactic for macrophages and results in the recruitment of CD8+ cells, production of IL-2 and IFN-γ, which eventually lead to formation of granulomas [14,37,38].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Encephalitozoon cuniculi infection in farmed rabbits in Egypt

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Encephalitozoon cuniculi is an important microsporidian parasite with zoonotic potential. The present study highlights the impact of encephalitozoonosis on rabbit health in Egypt. Three rabbit farms in Giza, with a total of 16,400 rabbits were investigated due to occurrence of rabbits displaying clinical signs consistent with encephalitozoonosis. Results: Clinical signs observed during a 4 months observation period in 2018 included vestibular disease, paresis, limb paralysis, cataracts, phacoclastic uveitis, frequent urination, marked decrease in body weight and in some pregnant females, also repeated abortions. The total morbidity rates in adult and young rabbits were 76.7% and 81.5%, respectively. The highest mortality rate was recorded in offspring (12.3%), followed by dams (5.6%), and the lowest recorded mortality rate was in males (0.04%). Post-mortem findings included enteritis, pale enlarged kidneys, congested leptomeninges, focal brain necrosis, and endometrial congestion. Histopathological examination revealed nonsuppurative meningoencephalitis and glial nodules with central necrosis in the brain, vacuolation and necrosis of renal tubular epithelium, and corneal ulceration and ruptured lens capsule with fragmentation of lenticular fibres. E. cuniculi were observed in the brain, retinal ganglion cells, kidneys, and liver. Transmission electron microscopy examination revealed the presence of different developmental stages of E. cuniculi in the brain and kidney. Presence of E. cuniculi was confirmed by conventional polymerase chain reaction using a universal 16S gene for Encephalitozoon spp. followed by sequencing and sequence analysis. Conclusions: The presence of E. cuniculi in rabbits was confirmed at three farms in Egypt. Nervous signs and ocular lesions were the most predominant findings in these farms.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Encephalitozoon cuniculi infection in farmed rabbits in Egypt

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, microsporidian spores can be differentiated from these microorganisms given that they are uniform in size and nonbudding. 14,15 This stain, when used in combination with others, makes the confirmation of microsporidiosis much easier. Gram stain reacts with peptidoglycans, which could suggest their presence within E. cuniculi spores.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In most cases, detection of this microorganism is made by electron microscopy, coprodiagnosis, cytology, indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT), molecular biology analysis, and histology. 15 The spores are ovoid, ~1.5-2.5 μm in length, and have a thick wall composed of an outer proteinaceous exospore, an endospore made of chitin, and an inner plasma membrane. 19 The spore contains a unique nucleus and a polar tube coiled 5-6 times.…”

Section: Research-article2017mentioning

confidence: 99%

Histochemical study ofEncephalitozoon cuniculispores in the kidneys of naturally infected New Zealand rabbits

et al. 2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Encephalitozoon cuniculi is an important microsporidian pathogen that is considered an emergent, zoonotic, and opportunistic. It infects both domestic and laboratory rabbits, generating severe chronic interstitial and granulomatous nephritis with fibrosis and granulomatous encephalitis. Encephalitozoonosis is diagnosed in paraffin-embedded sections by examining the spores in the host tissues. The spores are difficult to observe when the samples are stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E), particularly when there is an inflammatory reaction and tissue damage. The spores are easily mistaken for other microorganisms, such as fungi (yeasts), protozoa, and bacteria. In our study, we used kidney samples from E. cuniculi-positive rabbits and employed 14 recommended histologic stains for detecting microsporidia spores: alcian blue, calcofluor white, Giemsa, Gram, Grocott, H&E, Luna, Luxol fast blue, Masson trichrome, modified trichrome stain (MTS), periodic acid-Schiff reaction (PAS), Van Gieson, Warthin-Starry (WS), and Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN).We concluded that MTS and Gram stain, detected by light microscopy, and calcofluor white stain, detected by ultraviolet light microscopy, are the best stains for detecting spores of E. cuniculi in paraffin-embedded tissues from infected rabbits. These stains were superior to WS, ZN, Giemsa, and PAS for identifying spores without background "noise" or monochromatic interference. Also, they allow individual spores to be discerned in paraffin-embedded tissues. MTS allows observation of the polar tube, polaroplast, and posterior vacuole, the most distinctive parts of the spore.

show abstract

“…This would cause the granulomatous reaction observed in most of the infected animals with Types B or C cerebral lesions, and this is consistent with the observation that spores and intact cysts were found adjacent to granulomatous reactions [ 30 ]. In support of this, it has been hypothesized that the chitin of endospore microsporidians is chemotactic for macrophages [ 31 ], leading to the recruitment of CD8 + cells and production of IL-2 and IFN- γ [ 32 ]. The ending result is a granuloma [ 1 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Encephalitozoon cuniculi: Grading the Histological Lesions in Brain, Kidney, and Liver during Primoinfection Outbreak in Rabbits

Rodríguez-Tovar

Nevárez-Garza

Trejo-Chávez

et al. 2016

Journal of Pathogens

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This is the first confirmed report of Encephalitozoon cuniculi (E. cuniculi) in farm meat rabbits located in Northern Mexico. Eighty young rabbits exhibited clinical signs of this zoonotic emerging disease, like torticollis, ataxia, paresis, circling, and rolling. Samples of brain, kidney, and liver were examined for histology lesions. For the first time the lesions caused by E. cuniculi were graded according to their severity (I, II, and III) and the size of the granulomas (Types A, B, and C). The main cerebral injuries were Grade III, coinciding with the presence of Type C granulomas. The cerebral lesions were located in the cortex, brain stem, and medulla. The renal lesions were also Grade III distributed throughout cortex and renal medulla, with no granuloma formation. The involvement of hypersensitivity Types III and IV is suggested. All of the rabbits were seropositive to E. cuniculi by CIA testing, suggesting that this zoonotic and emerging pathogen is widely distributed among animals intended for human consumption. We believe this work could be used as a guide when examining E. cuniculi and will provide direction to confirm the diagnosis of this pathogen.

show abstract

Laboratory Diagnosis of Microsporidia

Cited by 12 publications

References 209 publications

Encephalitozoon cuniculi infection in farmed rabbits in Egypt

Encephalitozoon cuniculi infection in farmed rabbits in Egypt

Histochemical study ofEncephalitozoon cuniculispores in the kidneys of naturally infected New Zealand rabbits

Encephalitozoon cuniculi: Grading the Histological Lesions in Brain, Kidney, and Liver during Primoinfection Outbreak in Rabbits

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About