Free Living Amoeba Belonging to Vannella Spp. Isolated from a Hotspring in Amol City, Northern Iran

Background: Free-living amoebae have various genera that are found in several environmental niches such as soil, freshwater, dust, seawater and hotsprings. Most of Free-living amoebae are normally harmless to humans. However, some ameoba such as Acanthamoeba and also Naegleria fowleri, Balamuthia manderillaris and Sappinia are identified as opportunistic and pathogenic amoebae that can cause eye diseases, encephalitis, and meningoencephalitis in human. Vannellidae are a family of free-living amoebae and exist mainly in soil, freshwater, and marine habitats. This amoeba is nonpathogenic for human, but can act as a Trojan horse for other pathogens such as Microsporidia. The present study reports the occurrence of Vannella spp. in a hotspring of Amol city. Materials and Methods: 22 samples were taken from hotsprings of Mazandaran province during our previous study. The plates were checked for the presence of Vannella spp. according to the specific morphological criteria. DNA extraction, PCR and sequencing was performed on the positive isolate. Results: The result showed that one plate contained fan-shaped amoebae suspected to Vannella spp. PCR analysis and sequencing was confirmed the occurrence of Vannella spp. in one sample of a hot spring of Amol, northern Iran. Conclusion: The result confirmed the presence of Vannella amoebae in the hotspring of Amol city. More studies are needed to clarify the real distribution of Vannella spp. in environmental niches and its pathogenic potential in Iran and worldwide.