Simple new test for rapid differentiation of prototheca. Prototheca wickerhamii can be found in high density in all domestic and municipal sewage, where it is 10 times more common than other prototheca spp. Prototheca species are achlorophyllous algae ubiquitous in nature. Prototheca is an ubiquitous, achlorophyllic aerobic algae. Protothecosis is a disease found in dogs, cats, cattle, and humans caused by a type of green alga known as prototheca that lacks chlorophyll. Bilateral choroiditis from prototheca wickerhamii algaemia.
Prototheca wickerhamii was cultured repeatedly from the wound drainage and the biopsy tissue. The ultrastructure of prototheca wickerhamii springerlink. With a few exceptions, all other infections in humans where the species was determined have been caused by prototheca wickerhamii 2, 4. Prototheca is also believed to be responsible for ulcerative dermatitis in the platypus. An optimized method for high quality dna extraction from. Both are spherical unicellular organisms, 330 m in. Text is available under the creative commons attributionsharealike license. The animal presented severe respiratory difficulty and nodules, sometimes ulcerated. Summary this article reports a new case of protothecosis by prototheca wickerhamii in goats. Ribosomal internal transcribed spacer of prototheca wickerhamii has characteristic structure useful for identification and genotyping. Trehalose assimilation is a key test to differentiate p. Prototheca wickerhamii hand infection successfully treated. This article reports a new case of protothecosis by prototheca wickerhamii in goats. However, prototheca species were not isolated from the milk house water, milk pipeline, ponds, creeks, ditches, swamps, heifer barn.
Although it is classified as an alga genus chlorella, the disease, protothecosis, is included under mycoses because of its clinical pathological presentations. Pdf a simple new test to differentiate prototheca wickerhamii from prototheca zopfii by determining susceptibility to. It is widely present in the environment and is a rare cause of infection in humans protothecosis and most commonly presents as nodules of the skin. We present a case of fatal infection in a 78yearold cardiac transplant recipient and discuss pitfalls in the clinical and laboratory diagnoses. The diagnosis of prototheca mastitis has ramification for the overall herd mastitis prevention approach as well as the individual cow.
Animal pathogens, prototheca stagnora, and prototheca blaschkeae, are not known to cause disease in humans 2. Oct 01, 2014 prototheca wickerhamii is an achlorophyllic alga and is ubiquitous in nature, which can cause human infections. All the species within this genus, even though classified as green algae, have forfeited their photosynthetic ability and have switched to. Identification of prototheca zopfii from bovine mastitis. When initially isolated from slime flux of trees by kriiger in 18946 prototheca were thought to be fungal organisms. The reason for which the ngs was performed only on dna isolated with the n method, and not with the others, including the ln method was not only better. Prototheca wickerhamii in a dog with cutaneous, ocular and. Prototheca was first linked to bovine mastitis in 1952, but was not considered a significant pathogen until relatively recently. Wound infection by prototheca wickerhamii, a saprophytic alga. Auxenochlorella protothecoides and prototheca wickerhamii plastid genome. Bovine mastitis is an important and complex disease responsible for economic losses in the dairy industry. Protothecosis by prototheca wickerhamii in goats camboim. The sequencing yielded 2860 scaffolds with the total assembly size of 29 mbps manuscript under preparation. Complete sequence of the mitochondrial dna of the chlorophyte alga prototheca wickerhamii.
Pdf simple test for rapid differentiation of prototheca wickerhamii. Prototheca species are generally considered to be achlorophyllic algae and are ubiquitous in nature. If protothecal mastitis is suspected, careful culture and identification to confirm the presence of prototheca is. Auxenochlorella protothecoides and prototheca wickerhamii. Sykes, in canine and feline infectious diseases, 2014. Both are known to cause disease in dogs, while most human. The organism was then tested with api 20c aux biomerieux, which had been obtained for this purpose. Evaluation of the susceptibility of prototheca zopfii to milk. Ribosomal internal transcribed spacer of prototheca wickerhamii has. Almost all prototheca isolates from bovine milk in europe and asia belong to p. Prototheca wickerhamii cutaneous and systemic infections. Algae are a diverse group of eukaryotic, photosynthetic microbes. Prototheca wickerhamii pol1 strain, originally isolated at the department of clinical microbiology, childrens university hospital of krakow, from the cerebrospinal fluid of a 6month child with the signs of neuroinfection, which was proved to be the first case of human protothecosis in poland, was used in this study. Prototheca mastitis could be transmitted from cow to cow during milking time 3,11 with severe economic losses 12,16,23,36,45.
Biotype ii strains of the green alga prototheca zopfii can be involved, most often resulting in chronic mastitis of difficult treatment associated with reduced milk production. Sep 25, 2015 auxenochlorella protothecoides and prototheca wickerhamii plastid genome. Peritonitis due to prototheca wickerhamii in a patient undergoing chronic ambulatory. Sep 24, 2011 prototheca wickerhamii isolated from blood of 61yearold kidney transplant patient was described. Biopsy of a wound infection of the palmar fascia in a young diabetic woman revealed characteristic periodic acidschiffpositive prototheca species cells with a rosette configuration and internal septation. Pdf algaemia due to prototheca wickerhamii in a patient. Prototheca wickerhamii an overview sciencedirect topics. Most of these cases have been caused by prototheca wickerhamii, although prototheca zopfi has been recovered from 2 patients. The occurrence of protothecosis can be local or disseminated and acute or chronic, with the latter being more common. Ribosomal internal transcribed spacer of prototheca wickerhamii. In the presence of adequate nutrients vegetative spores.
The manual lysis centrifuga tion method was superior to other methods in detecting p. A rare case of prototheca wickerhamii meningitis is reported in a patient without any underlying immunodeficient condition. The two most common species are prototheca wickerhamii and prototheca zopfii. Characterization of prototheca wickerhamii isolated from. Prototheca wickerhamii, an environmental alga, rarely causes human infections. From these sources they may contaminate aquatic systems and food and subsequently be eaten by man and animals and then excreted, completing the cycle. Algaemia due to prototheca wickerhamii in a patient with myasthenia gravis article pdf available in journal of clinical microbiology 3512. Bovine mastitis associated with prototheca blaschkeae. A 50micrograms clotrimazole disk provides a rapid and reliable means of distinguishing p. Wound infection by prototheca wickerhamii, a saprophytic. Though generally considered noninfectious agents in mammals, a few algae are pathogenic.
Prototheca is a genus of algae in the family chlorellaceae. Prototheca wickerhamii tubaki and soneda, 1959 morphology. Most cases reported have a suppressed immune system from drugs or disease. Diseases have been classified as i cutaneous lesions, ii olecranon bursitis, or. The species most often associated with bovine mastitis are p. This organism was identified by morphological features and microbiological tests. Electron micrographs of prototheca show a doublelayered cell wall with outer thinner and inner thicker portions 12. The patient was successfully treated with ketoconazole. Nuclear division in coordination with cytoplasmic cleavage gives rise to uninucleate cytoplasmic segments, each of which acquires a delicate cell wall and develops into an autospore.
Prototheca zopfii is most common, but prototheca wickerhamii and prototheca trispora also have been identified from infected glands. Although the classification of prototheca species is still in flux, six species are currently recognized. Several diagnostic features distinguishing prototheca species, saprophytic algae, from yeasts. University of minnesota college of veterinary medicine. Life cycle and variation of prototheca wickerhamii science. They are not plant, animal, or fungus but arealong with molds and mildewsmembers of the kingdom protista. Several diagnostic features distinguishing prototheca species, saprophytic algae, from. This type of infection is rare, but the number of reported cases is increasing worldwide. Prototheca wickerhamii is a yeastlike organism that resembles the green alga chlorella.
A simple new test to differentiate prototheca wickerhamii from prototheca zopfii by determining susceptibility to clotrimazole is described. All chlorella species except chlorella 0 2001 elsevier science inc. Two clinical isolates of prototheca wickerhamii were freezedried, fixed and studied by electron microscopy and were also examined growing in culture medium by phase contrast light microscopy. Prototheca species are achlorophyllous algae with phylogenetic affinities to the genus chlorella.
The definite diagnosis usually depends on morphological identification of the organisms in wet slide preparations of cultures andor direct identification in tissue specimens. After the final identification of prototheca wickerhamii was made postmortem by molecular methods described below, the organism was then reexamined with a wet mount, stained with lactophenol cotton blue, and morula forms were noted fig. Wetmount microscopy and culture of cerebral spinal fluid specimens, along with temperature resistance, cycloheximide tolerance, carbohydrates assimilation, including api 20c aux tests of the isolated etiologic agent were performed. Prototheca species can be readily cultured in the microbiology laboratory on standard media such as blood agar and sabouraud dextrose agar, and yeastlike colonies are usually visible within 7 days. Prototheca wickerhamii hand infection successfully treated by. Molecular characterization of prototheca strains isolated. Prototheca wickerhamii isolated from blood of 61yearold kidney transplant patient was described.
Prototheca is a colorless algae commonly found in manure, soil and water. It and its close relative helicosporidium are unusual in that they are actually green algae that have become parasites. A twoyearold intact female collie presented with a tentative diagnosis of systemic blastomycosis based on compatible clinical signs and history and a positive urine blastomyces antigen enzyme immunoassay. Prototheca, yeast, and bacillus as a cause of mastitis. Pdf protothecosis is an emerging environmental algal disease of humans, and. Prototheca zopfii, prototheca wickerhamii, prototheca blaschkeae, prototheca stagnora, prototheca ulmea, and prototheca cutis table 701. Prototheca wickerhamii is a ubiquitous green alga that does not have chlorophyll. Pdf protothecosis by prototheca wickerhamii in goats. It has been found to colonize humans in the fingernails, skin, respiratory tract, and digestive systems. Prototheca algae mia, a healthcareassociated infection, was observed in.
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