The microbe Naegleria fowleri, commonly called the brain-eating-amoeba, was first identified from a fatal case of primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) in Australia in 1961. In 1965, three further cases of fatal PAM were found, from which clinical and laboratory investigations pointed to a relation with acute bacterial meningitis among the cases of an unknown etiology. According to Fowler & Carter (1965), when post-death examinations of the bodies were performed researchers found that “microscopically the meningeal exudate consisted of about equal proportions of neutrophil leukocytes and chronic inflammatory cells, amongst which small, often degenerate amoebae were sparsely distributed” (p.740). The species of the organism that caused the amoeboflagellate related disease was later named Naegleria fowleri after one of the primary authors of the report, M. Fowler. Butt reports that the first case of PAM in the United States occurred in Florida in 1962 and a further retrospective study reported by dos Santos Netos suggested that additional identified cases of PAM in Virginia may have dated as far back as 1937 (as cited in Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2013, Pathogen). As research on the microbe ensues, more cases of PAM are beginning to surface and the search for a cure to the fatal infection is imperative.
The life cycle of Naegleria fowleri includes three different stages: amoeboid trophozoites, flagellates, and cysts; due to the transitory nature of the microbe and the specific forms that it can take, it is frequently referred to as an amoeboflagellate. Despite its abilities to take on various forms, the amoeboid trophozoite is the only infective stage of the microbe and it requires favorable environmental ...
... middle of paper ...
...e, J., & Pernin, P. (1998). Genetic variation in the free-living amoeba
Naegleria fowleri. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 64(8), 2977-2981. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC106802/pdf/am002977.pdf Trabelsi, H., Dendana, F., Sellami, A., Sellami, H., Cheikhrouhou, F., Neji, S., … Ayadi, A. (2012). Pathogenic free-living amoebae: Epidemiology and clinical review. Pathologie Biologie, 60(6), 399-405.
Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com.ezproxy.baylor.edu/science/article/pii/S0369811412000211 Visvesvara, G. S., Moura, H., & Schuster, F. L. (2007). Pathogenic and opportunistic free-living amoebae: Acanthamoeba spp., Balamuthia mandarillaris, Naegleria fowleri, and
Sappinia diploidea. FEMS Immunology and Medical Microbiology, 50(1), 1-26.
Retrieved from
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1574-695X.2007.00232.x/pdf
In this lab project, the microbiology students were given 2 unknown bacteria in a mixed broth each broth being numbered. The goal of this project is to determine the species of bacteria in the broth. They had to separate and isolate the bacteria from the mixed broth and ran numerous tests to identify the unknown bacteria. The significance of identifying an unknown bacteria is in a clinical setting. Determining the exact bacteria in order to prescribe the right treatment for the patient. This project is significant for a microbiology students because it gives necessary skills to them for future careers relating to clinical and research work.
The purpose of this laboratory is to learn about cultural, morphological, and biochemical characteristics that are used in identifying bacterial isolates. Besides identifying the unknown culture, students also gain an understanding of the process of identification and the techniques and theory behind the process. Experiments such as gram stain, negative stain, endospore and other important tests in identifying unknown bacteria are performed. Various chemical tests were done and the results were carefully determined to identify the unknown bacteria. First session of lab started of by the selection of an unknown bacterium then inoculations of 2 tryptic soy gar (TSA) slants, 1 nutrient broth (TSB), 1 nutrient gelatin deep, 1 motility
Bacillus globigii. (n.d.) WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. (2003-2008). Retrieved March 20 2014 from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Bacillus+globigii
Disease and parasitism play a pervasive role in all life. Many of these diseases start with microparasites, which are characterized by their ability to reproduce directly within an individual host. They are also characterized by their small size, short duration of infection, and the production of an immune response in infected and recovered individuals. Microparasites which damage hosts in the course of their association are recognized as pathogens. The level of the interaction and the extent of the resultant damage depends on both the virulence of the pathogen, as well as the host defenses. If the pathogen can overcome the host defenses, the host will be damaged and may not survive. If on the other hand the host defenses overcome the pathogen, the microparasite may fail to establish itself within the host and die.
Naegleria fowleri, the brain eating amoeba, exists around the world; reservoirs of N fowleri include sediments of lakes, rivers, geothermal water, soil, and poorly kept swimming pools. These microbes can live in temperatures up to 45 degree Celsius and do not require a host cell for survival. The free-living amoeba is the etiological source of primary amoebic meningeocephalitis (PAM), an acute and fatal disease of the central nervous system with fatality rates over 99%. Onset of illness is quick and death typically occurs within 7-14 days. Treatment for PAM poses a challenge because of rapid disease progression and limited awareness among clinicians. According to the CDC, there are more than 30 species of Naegleria that exist, however, N fowleri is exclusively the species recognized to be pathogenic in humans. When conditions are favorable, this free-living amoeba can survive outside of the host cell.
Being a gram-negative bacterium, L. pneumophila has lipopolysaccharides (LPS) that act as endotoxin within a human host. The presence of a flagella is thought to mediate adherence to human lung cells, thereby causing infection, since flagella-less strains do not cause disease. Once attached to human cells, the organism is engulfed by a macrophage where is utilizes the internal environment to multiply.
One thing that must be noted is that contrary to popular belief, infectious agents such as viruses, bacteria, parasites, etc. are not desig...
Necrotizing Fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria ) from an essay by Katrina Tram Duong, edited by S.N. Carson M.D.
"Bloodborne Pathogens : MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2014.
Hicks, Rob, Dr., and Trisha Macnair, Dr. “Meningitis.” BBC. Dec. 2005. 27 July 2006 .
Meningitis, it’s an infection in the cerebral spinal fluid and inflammation of the meninges; the three outer layers of the brain. To be more specific, those three layers are called the Dura mater, Arachnoid mater, and the Pia mater. There are three main types of meningitis that will be discussed throughout this paper; viral, bacterial, and fungal. Each form is very similar but they all vary in terms of causative organisms, treatment and severity. Although meningitis is not very common, it can become very severe and always needs to be treated immediately.
In the documentary, Hunting the Nightmare Bacteria, reporter David Hoffman investigates this new untreatable infection along two individuals and a bacterial virus within a hospital. The first individual Hoffman investigates is Addie Rerecich of Arizona, she was treated for a staph infection with antibiotics, but other complications arise. Addie had a lung transplant, she was given several different antibiotics, but her body became pan-bacteria, non-resistance to the bacteria. Addie’s life was on the edge, she had to be on life support, and finally she received new lungs. The transplant helped Addie but it would take years before could go back to normal before the infection. The second individual is David Ricci; he had his leg amputated in India after a train accident. The antibiotic treatment he received became toxic to his body increasing problems. While in India, he underwent surgery almost every day because of infections he was developing. Back in Seattle, doctors found the NDM-1 resistance gene in his body; NDM-1 gene is resistance to almost all antib...
Meliodosis, also called Whitmore’s disease, was first discovered in 1912. This infectious disease is an endemic in Southeast Asia and Northern Australia, and it has a high mortality rate (Cheng and Currie, 2005). The mortality rate of meliodosis in Thailand is approximately 40% and 15% in Australia (Limmathurotsakul and Peacock, 2011). Meliodosis is caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei, a gram-negative saprophytic bacterium capable of living in hostile conditions such as lack of nutrients, both acidic and alkali environments, and a wide range of temperatures. In Thailand, B. pseudomallei is responsible for 20% of community-acquired septicemia (Cheng and Currie, 2005). Current treatment options are expensive and extensive (CDC, 2012). Without
You can search for primary articles through the Biomedical Library Home Page www.biomed.lib.umn.edu using PubMed (“Find It” enabled) or the Emerging Infectious Disease online journal through the CDC website www.cdc.gov. This assignment should be done alone. You may not work with other students who have the same topic or consult or utilize a paper written by students in previous