Abstract
BackgroundLymphatic filariasis (LF), a vector-borne parasitic disease, is endemic in several parts of India and mostly affects the poor or those with a low-income. The disease results in huge numbers of morbidities, disabilities, and deaths every year. Association of co-infection with other pathogens makes the condition more severe. Although co-infection is becoming a growing area of research, it is yet to emerge as a frontier research topic in filarial research specifically. This study reports the occurrence of a fungal infection in a large number of patients suffering from bancroftian filariasis in two districts of West Bengal, India.MethodsNocturnal blood samples from filarial patients containing parasites and fungus were initially co-cultured, and further the fungus was isolated and characterized. Molecular identification of the isolate was carried out by PCR-based selective amplification and sequencing of highly-conserved D1/D2 region of 26S rDNA, whereas pathogenicity was determined by amplification of the RPS0 gene. A phylogenetic tree was constructed to study the relationship between the isolate and common pathogenic yeasts. The isolate was studied for antibiotic sensitivity, whereas morphological characterization was performed by microscopic techniques.ResultsThe isolate was identified as Pichia guilliermondii and this fungus was found to exist in co-infection with Wuchereria bancrofti in filarial patients. The fungus showed resistance to azole antifungals, griseofulvin, and, amphotericin B, whereas significant susceptibility was evident in cases of nystatin and cycloheximide. A total of 197 out of 222 patients showed this co-infection.ConclusionThis study revealed, for the first time, that P. guilliermondii exists as a co-infection in microfilaraemic individuals living in a filarial endemic zone. The findings are important and have relevance to human health, especially for filarial patients.
Highlights
Lymphatic filariasis (LF), a vector-borne parasitic disease, is endemic in several parts of India and mostly affects the poor or those with a low-income
The causative agents of LF i.e. filarial parasites live in the body cavity or tissues of vertebrate hosts where they parasitize the lymphatics, which results in the obstruction of the lymphatic vessels, incompetence, lymphostasis, lymphatic dysfunction, and interstitial fibrosis, followed by immunological dysfunction and inflammation which results in elephantiasis [4]
Since we have studied the prevalence of LF caused by the W. bancrofti infection in the two districts of West Bengal [22], it was interesting to study the prevalence of this typical fungal infection in the microfilaraemic patients under investigation
Summary
Lymphatic filariasis (LF), a vector-borne parasitic disease, is endemic in several parts of India and mostly affects the poor or those with a low-income. Lymphatic filariasis (LF), a vector-borne disease mainly caused by the filarial parasites– namely Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi, and Brugia timori-has become a diseases [1] It results in significant economic and psychosocial impacts wherever it is endemic; disfiguring and/or incapacitating more than 40 million individuals, their families, and the endemic communities. The causative agents of LF i.e. filarial parasites live in the body cavity or tissues of vertebrate hosts where they parasitize the lymphatics, which results in the obstruction of the lymphatic vessels, incompetence, lymphostasis, lymphatic dysfunction (hydrocele and lymphedema), and interstitial fibrosis, followed by immunological dysfunction and inflammation which results in elephantiasis [4] This disease promotes vulnerability to opportunistic infections [5], during the progression of lymphedema from chronic filarial infection. Development of elephantiasis is caused by the long-term recurrent secondary infections by opportunistic microbes [4]
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