Case study 1 - Giardiasis Flashcards
What is Giardiasis also known as?
bever fever
backpackers diarrhoea
wilderness diarrhoea
backcountry diarrhoea
many different names depending on where you pick it p from
Why is Giardiasis also known as bever fever?
It was one believed that people could pick up the infection from bevers
What is the best way to figure out which disease this was?
the symptoms are similar to many other symptoms, the morphology of the disease provides the most evidence. The cysts are indicative of Giardiasis especially since they were excreted inonly 1 of 3 stools
What are the 2 different stages of infection?
acute
chronic
where is giardiasis the leading parasitic infection?
US
how many people are symptomatic with this disease?
280 million
WHere is it distributed?
worldwide but more prevalent in developing countries
how many adults and children in percent have the disease?
2% adults
6% children
how many people in the US are symptomatic?
2.5 million people
which communities are at most risk?
homosexual communities, nursing homes, babies
what are the disease symptoms? (5)
Appears usually in first week of travelling
3 or more unformed stools within 24hrs
nausea, vomitting
rapid weakness, bloating, cramps, fever, loss of appetite
if you are lactose intolerant what can happen when you get giardiasis?
rashes
what is the causative agent of Giardiasis?
Giardia lamblia
Giardia lamblia is also known as….
Giardia intestinalis
Giardia duodenalis
What has genotyping shown about Giardia lamblia?
there are 5 different sub groups of which the sub groups A and B infect humans. C,D,E will infect other animals as will A and B.
There are other species of Giardia that infect what?
birds
reptiles
amphibians
What are the 2 forms of the protozoan giardia lamblia?
trophozoite
cyst
which form of the protozoan is infective?
cyst
Describe the morphology of the trophozoite
motile form leaf shaped flattened 10-12micro m long 4 pairs of flagella 2 nucleis median body claw hammer shaped ventral adhesive disk lack golgi apparatus lack perioxsomes
How does the trophozoite generate energy?
glycolysis
Is the trophozoite anaerobic or aerobic?
anaerobic
adapted to life in the gut
What is the ventral disk used for?
adhesive disk used for attachment - myosin rich structure that anchors this parasite onto the brush boarder of the digestive tract
Are both nucelis in the trophozoite active?
both are transcriptionally active
What is the surface of the cell of the trophozoite coated with?
VSP
variant surface protein
antigenic variation
changes every 10 generations