Four species of Naegleria were tested for their ability to migrate under agarose. Pathogenic N. fowleri strains exhibited rapid locomotion at 37 degrees C. Environmental isolates of N. fowleri moved faster than clinical isolates which had been kept in axenic culture for longer periods, and this result was confirmed by using the 84-2205-7 strain kept in axenic culture for 1 or 5 months. Nonpatho...

Noted biologist and author John Tyler Bonner has experimented with cellular slime molds for more than sixty years, and he has done more than anyone else to raise these peculiar collections of amoebae from a minor biological curiosity to a major model organism--one that is widely studied for clues to the development and evolution of all living things. Now, five decades after he published his fir...

Parachlamydiaceae, which naturally infect amoebae, form a sister taxon to the Chlamydiaceae on the basis of the Chlamydia-like cycle of replication and 80% to 90% homology of ribosomal RNA genes. Because intra-amoebal growth could increase the virulence of some intracellular bacteria, Parachlamydiaceae may be pathogenic. Arguments supporting a pathogenic role are that Chlamydia pneumoniae, a we...

In the present study, the occurrence of free-living protozoa (FLP) and foodborne bacterial pathogens on dishcloths was investigated. Dishcloths form a potentially important source of cross-contamination with FLP and foodborne pathogens in food-related environments. First various protocols for recovering and quantifying FLP from dishcloths were assessed. The stomacher technique is recommended to...

In recent years in Poland a very distinctive form of proliferative gill disease of rainbow trout, accompanied by the presence of amoeba-like cells, was observed. The disease appeared to be the nodular gill disease for the first time diagnosed in Poland. Amoeba-like cells seemed to be related to pathological gill lesions, whereas other potential agents such as bacteria and parasites were exclude...

Free-living amoebae are frequent hosts for bacterial endosymbionts. In this study, the symbionts of eight novel environmental Acanthamoeba strains isolated from different locations worldwide were characterized. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that they were related to one of four evolutionary lineages of amoeba symbionts recognized previously. This study provides evidence for the existence of on...

An international group of 44 scientists from 16 countries assembled at the University of Antwerpen to share experiences and assess current research progress concerning testate amoebae. It had been 23 years since the last testate amoebae workshop was held in Aachen, Germany and 30 years since the first testate amoebae workshop before it was organized in 1976 in Sofia, Bulgaria. Interest in testa...

The spatial distribution of planktonic naked amoebae in the waters of a mangrove and estuarine habitat was investigated. Amoebae were grouped either as ‘attached’ (when on suspended flocs) or ‘free’ (when floating in the open water). Consistent with previous studies, amoebae were numerically important in the water column. For example, in mangrove water from south Florida, they averaged 94 640 c...

INTRODUCTION In hospital and other health care facilities, contamination of water systems by potentially infectious microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses and protozoa, is a source of nosocomial infections, which may originate fromcolonization of water pipes, cooling towers, spa pools, taps, showers and water supplies. Objective. The study focuses on the occurrence of Legionella spp., free-l...