Rojo Juan U, Rajendran Rajkumar, Nyangau Emmanuel M, Castellanos-Gonzalez Alejandro, Salazar Jose H
Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, School of Health Professions, Medical Branch, University of Texas, 301 University Blvd, Galveston, TX, 77555-0128, USA.
Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical Branch, University of Texas, 301 University Blvd, Galveston, TX, 77555-0128, USA.
Parasitol Res. 2024 Dec 27;123(12):421. doi: 10.1007/s00436-024-08443-3.
Naegleria fowleri is a free-living amoeba and the causative agent of Primary Amebic Meningoencephalitis (PAM), a rare yet almost always fatal disease that primarily affects children. While only 431 PAM cases have been reported worldwide, the southern states of the United States, including Texas, report the highest number of cases. Despite the high mortality of the disease, studies have identified antibodies to N. fowleri in healthy individuals suggesting that exposure to this pathogen is common, but disease is rare. Here, we investigated the seroprevalence of N. fowleri in the general population of individuals residing in an area of Texas to identify population characteristics or water-based activity levels that may be associated with seropositivity. For this, healthy human participants were surveyed, and blood samples were collected to test their sera against N. fowleri lysate by indirect ELISA. A seropositivity rate of 89% was observed with 40% of participants demonstrating a titer of up to 1:500. Demographic and water-activity level differences among subjects did not correlate with antibody titers. The high seropositivity suggests environmental exposure and the development of humoral immunity against this pathogen.
福氏耐格里阿米巴是一种自由生活的变形虫，是原发性阿米巴脑膜脑炎（PAM）的病原体，PAM是一种罕见但几乎总是致命的疾病，主要影响儿童。虽然全球仅报告了431例PAM病例，但包括得克萨斯州在内的美国南部各州报告的病例数最多。尽管该疾病死亡率很高，但研究已在健康个体中发现了针对福氏耐格里阿米巴的抗体，这表明接触这种病原体很常见，但患病却很罕见。在此，我们调查了得克萨斯州某地区普通人群中福氏耐格里阿米巴的血清阳性率，以确定可能与血清阳性相关的人群特征或水上活动水平。为此，我们对健康的人类参与者进行了调查，并采集了血液样本，通过间接ELISA检测他们的血清对福氏耐格里阿米巴裂解物的反应。观察到血清阳性率为89%，40%的参与者的滴度高达1:500。受试者之间的人口统计学和水上活动水平差异与抗体滴度无关。高血清阳性率表明存在环境暴露以及针对这种病原体的体液免疫的发展。
