Cryptosporidium

Isolation and Identification of Giardia Cysts, Cryptosporidium Oocysts and Eree Living Pathogenic Amoebae in Water etc., 1989... 

Cryptosporidium 0 as of 01/01/02 Tt3 Gastrointestinal illness (e.g., diarrhea, vomiting, cramps) Human and animal fecal waste... 

Ozone is more effective than chlorine in deactivating poliovirus, Cryptosporidium parvum, Giardia lamblia, and other protozoa. It also improves the color, taste, and odor of water dramatically. However, since no residual amount remains, it is always necessary to add a small amount of a more stable disinfectant as well (sodium hypochlorite, chlorine dioxide, etc.). 

Some of the pathogens in Table 2, infect only humans (e.g., Vibrio cholerae. Salmonella typhi. Shigella dysenteriae, poliovirus, hepatitis A virus), whereas others, known as zoonotic, infect both humans and animals Salmonella no thypi. Shigella no dysenteriae, Campylobacter, enteropathogenic Escherichia coli such as for example the biotype 0157 H7, Cryptosporidium, etc.). The control of those that only infect humans is easier than the control of the zoonotic ones. Thus, some of them (S, typhi, S. dysenteriae, poliovirus, etc.) have practically been eradicated in many developed countries, whereas the eradication, and even the control below certain levels, of the zoonotic ones is a very difficult task. 

Atherbolt TB, LeChevalier MW, Norton WD, Rosen JS (1998) Effect of rainfall on Giardia and Cryptosporidium. J Am Water Works Assoc 90 66-80... 

LeChevalier MS, Norton WD (1995) Giardia and Cryptosporidium in raw and finished water. J Am Water Works Assoc 87 54—68... 

McKenzie WR, Hoxie NJ, Proctor ME et al (1994) Massive waterborne outbreak of Cryptosporidium infection associated with a filtered public water supply. N Eng J Med 331 161-167... 

Bacteria are likely precipitants in many other cases including Escherichia coli, Salmonella species, Shigella species, Vibrio cholerae, and Clostridium difficile. The term dysentery has often been used to describe some of these bacterial infections when associated with serious occurrences of bloody diarrhea. Additionally, acute diarrheal conditions can be prompted by parasites-protozoa such as Entamoeba histolytica, Microsporidium, Giardia lamblia, and Cryptosporidium parvum. Most of these infectious agents can be causes of traveler s diarrhea, a common malady alflicting travelers worldwide. It usually occurs during or just after travel subsequent to the ingestion of fecally-contaminated food or water. It has an abrupt onset but usually subsides within 2 to 3 days. 

I and 1990s because of its relationship with HIV/AIDS. Cryptosporidium accounts for 2.2% and 6.1% of diarrhea cases in immunocompetent people in developed and developing countries, respectively.3 These percentages increase to 7% and 12% in children in developed and developing countries, respectively, and to 14% and 24% in immunocompromised persons in developed and developing countries, respectively.3... 

Cryptosporidium is an intracellular protozoan parasite that is capable of completing its entire life cycle within one host. Humans become infected on ingestion of the oocysts, and autoinfection and persistent infections are possible owing to repeated life cycles within the GI tract.3 As few as 10 to 100 oocysts can cause infection.3... 

There is no antimicrobial available that is effective at consistently eradicating Cryptosporidium, particularly in immunocompromised hosts. In general, immunocompetent persons... 

Simplest method of diagnosis is detection of oocysts by modified acid-fast staining of a stool specimen. Standard ova and parasite test does not include Cryptosporidium. 

Fresh stool may show trophozoites while preserved specimens yield cysts. (Note stool for ova may show the presence of other parasites [e.g., Cryptosporidium parvum, E. histolytica, or E. hartmanni] multiple stool samples may be needed.)... 

Note Fecal screening may show other intestinal parasites, including Cryptosporidium spp., Balantidium coii, Dientamoeba fragiiis, Isospora belli, C. lamblia, or Blastocystis hominis. 

Note According to several studies performed in the USA, it seems that fbenzalkonium chloride where the alkyl group R contains only 12 C-atoms (e.g. dodecyl benzylammonium chloride) is effective against the growth of Cryptosporidium spp. 

An example of the microorganism differentiation power achievable with the protein profiling approach is illustrated using the MALDI mass spectra of Escherichia coli and Cryptosporidium parvum (Figure 14.3). Clear... 

Figure 14.3 MALDI mass spectra of E. coli (top) and Cryptosporidium parvum (bottom).

Pure Ti02 was recently reported to be active in the disinfection of water contaminated by spores of the type Fusarium solani [142], Bacillus anthracis [143], or Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts [144], or when supported as nanocomposites on zeolite H(i for E. coli deactivation [145], and it found applications in water treatment as a replacement for chlorine. Ag-Ti02 immobilized systems were used for inactivation of bacteria, coupling the visible light response of the system and the strong bactericidal effect of Ag [146]. Silver was deposited on hydroxyapatite to form nanocomposites with a high capacity for bacterial adsorption and inactivation [147], or used for airborne bacterial remediation in indoor air [148],... 

Ryu, H., Gerrity, D., Crittenden, J.C. andAbbaszadegan, M. (2008) Photocatalytic inactivation of Cryptosporidium parvum with Ti02 and low-pressure ultraviolet irradiation. 

Sheather sugar flotation is recommended for the concentration of Cryptosporidium cysts. Although these oocysts will concentrate when the Formalin-ethyl acetate or zinc sulfate technique is used, they are more readily detected with the Sheather sugar flotation, for they stand out sharply from the background in this solution of high specific gravity. This procedure may be performed on unfixed or Formalin-fixed feces. The procedure for Sheather sugar flotation is outlined below. 

Acid-fast staining for Cryptosporidium sp. has recently become important because this parasite is now recognized as a cause of severe diarrhea in immunodeficient patients such as those with AIDS, and it can cause transient diarrhea in immunocompetent individuals. The modified acid-fast stain recommended is similar to that used to stain Nocardia spp. in that it uses milder acid decolorization. A variety of acid-fast and fluorochrome staining procedures have been described for Cryptosporidium spp., and all the procedures appear to work. 

The following procedure is useful for staining Nocardia species as well as Cryptosporidium species. This procedure may be used on fresh or Formalinfixed material or on material from concentration procedures. If the specimen is liquid, centrifuge it, and use the sediment to prepare a smear. 

The results are that Cryptosporidium oocysts stain bright red, and background materials stain blue or pale red. 

Kuczynska E., Boyer D.G., Shelton D.R., Comparison of immunofluorescence assay and immunomagnetic electrochemiluminescence in detection of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in karst water samples, J. Microbiol. Meth. 2003 53 17-26. 

Z.P. Aguilar and I. Fritsch, Immobilized enzyme-linked DNA-hybridization assay with electrochemical detection for Cryptosporidium parvum hsp70 mRNA. Anal. Chem. 75, 3890-3897 (2003). 

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