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Genetic Diversity and Prevalence of Giardia duodenalis in Qatar

journal contribution
submitted on 2024-07-07, 11:23 and posted on 2024-07-07, 11:24 authored by Marwa Chourabi, Sonia Boughattas, Atiyeh M. Abdallah, Ahmed Ismail, Jerzy M. Behnke, Hesham M. Al-Mekhlafi, Marawan Abu-Madi

Background

Giardia duodenalis is a common human intestinal parasite worldwide, and the causative agent of diarrhea, with the severity of disease ranging from asymptomatic to intense and debilitating infection. G. duodenalis is known to consist of eight genetically distinct assemblages, named from A to H. No data available on the genotypes and genetic diversity of G. duodenalis circulating in Qatar.

Methods

We genotyped 54 human Giardia isolates, collected from asymptomatic immigrants in Qatar, using a multilocus genotyping (MLGs) tool. We also investigated relationships between the subjects’ genotypes and their demographic data.

Results

Genomic DNA from 54 isolates were tested by PCR and sequence analysis at three loci: glutamate dehydrogenase (gdh), β-giardin (bg) and triose phosphate (tpi)). Assemblage A was identified in nine (16.67%), assemblage B in thirty (55.55%), and a mixture of assemblages A+B in fifteen (27.78%) isolates. All assemblage A isolates, genotyped in different loci, were assigned to sub-assemblage AII, and six of them had MLGs AII-1 while one new MLG was identified in two isolates. Sequences of assemblage B isolates have high level of genetic diversity and high presence of heterogeneous peaks, especially within the gdh gene. No significant associations between genotypes and the immigrants’ demographic data were found due to the extensive number of new variants.

Conclusions

MLGs was used herein to genotype 54 immigrant Giardia isolates. The high level of genetic variability found in our isolates hampered MLGs determination, more investigations are now required to consolidate our findings, and to enable a comprehensive understanding of the diversity within G. duodenalis assemblage B isolates.

Other Information

Published in: Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: https://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2021.652946

Additional institutions affiliated with: Medical Commission - MOPH

Funding

Qatar National Research Fund (NPRP1556-3-313).

History

Language

  • English

Publisher

Frontiers

Publication Year

  • 2021

License statement

This Item is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Institution affiliated with

  • Qatar University
  • Qatar University Health - QU
  • College of Health Sciences - QU HEALTH
  • Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Research Unit - QU HEALTH
  • Ministry of Public Health

Methodology

We genotyped 54 human Giardia isolates, collected from asymptomatic immigrants in Qatar, using a multilocus genotyping (MLGs) tool. We also investigated relationships between the subjects’ genotypes and their demographic data.

Geographic coverage

Qatar

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    Qatar University

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