IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v12y2015i4p3417-3427d47224.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Isolation and Molecular Characterization of Free-Living Amoebae from Different Water Sources in Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Margherita Montalbano Di Filippo

    (Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome, Italy)

  • Maristella Santoro

    (Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome, Italy)

  • Piero Lovreglio

    (Interdisciplinary Department of Medicine, University of Bari, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy)

  • Rosa Monno

    (Department of Basic Medical Science, Neuroscience and Sense Organ, University of Bari, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy)

  • Carmen Capolongo

    (Department of Basic Medical Science, Neuroscience and Sense Organ, University of Bari, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy)

  • Carla Calia

    (Department of Basic Medical Science, Neuroscience and Sense Organ, University of Bari, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy)

  • Luciana Fumarola

    (Department of Basic Medical Science, Neuroscience and Sense Organ, University of Bari, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy)

  • Rossella D'Alfonso

    (Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome, Italy)

  • Federica Berrilli

    (Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome, Italy)

  • David Di Cave

    (Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
    Laboratory of Parasitology, Foundation Polyclinic Tor Vergata, Viale Oxford 81, 00133 Rome, Italy)

Abstract

Free-living amoebae (FLA) are protozoa ubiquitous in Nature, isolated from a variety of environments worldwide. In addition to their natural distribution, some species have been found to be pathogenic to humans. In the present study a survey was conducted in order to evaluate the presence and to characterize at molecular level the isolates of amoebic organisms collected from different water sources in Italy. A total of 160 water samples were analyzed by culture and microscopic examination. FLA were found in 46 (28.7%) of the investigated water samples. Groundwater, well waters, and ornamental fountain waters were the sources with higher prevalence rates (85.7%, 50.0%, and 45.9%, respectively). Identification of FLA species/genotypes, based on the 18S rDNA regions, allowed to identify 18 (39.1%) Acanthamoeba isolates (genotypes T4 and T15) and 21 (45.6%) Vermamoeba vermiformis isolates. Other FLA species, including Vahlkampfia sp. and Naegleria spp., previously reported in Italy, were not recovered. The occurrence of potentially pathogenic free-living amoebae in habitats related to human population, as reported in the present study, supports the relevance of FLA as a potential health threat to humans.

Suggested Citation

  • Margherita Montalbano Di Filippo & Maristella Santoro & Piero Lovreglio & Rosa Monno & Carmen Capolongo & Carla Calia & Luciana Fumarola & Rossella D'Alfonso & Federica Berrilli & David Di Cave, 2015. "Isolation and Molecular Characterization of Free-Living Amoebae from Different Water Sources in Italy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-11, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:12:y:2015:i:4:p:3417-3427:d:47224
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/12/4/3417/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/12/4/3417/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Stefania Marcheggiani & Roberto Spurio & Lucia Cimarelli & Duarte Tito & Laura Mancini, 2015. "Scientific Symposium “Small Solution for Big Water-Related Problems: Innovative Microarrays and Small Sensors to Cope with Water Quality and Food Security”," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-9, December.
    2. Anna Maria Spagnolo & Marina Sartini & David Di Cave & Beatrice Casini & Benedetta Tuvo & Maria Luisa Cristina, 2019. "Evaluation of Microbiological and Free-Living Protozoa Contamination in Dental Unit Waterlines," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(15), pages 1-11, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:12:y:2015:i:4:p:3417-3427:d:47224. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.