This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Kahane, S.
Right arrow Articles by Friedman, M. G.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Kahane, S.
Right arrow Articles by Friedman, M. G.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Kahane, S.
Right arrow Articles by Friedman, M. G.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2001, p. 4789-4795, Vol. 67, No. 10
0099-2240/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/AEM.67.10.4789-4795.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Infection of Acanthamoeba polyphaga with Simkania negevensis and S. negevensis Survival within Amoebal Cysts

Simona Kahane,1 Bella Dvoskin,1 Mazit Mathias,2 and Maureen G. Friedman1,*

Department of Virology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev,1 and Institute of Pathology, Soroka University Hospital, Beer Sheva,2 Israel

Received 20 March 2001/Accepted 31 July 2001

Simkania negevensis, a novel microorganism belonging to the family Simkaniaceae in the order Chlamydiales, has an intracellular developmental cycle during which two morphological entities, elementary bodies (EB) and reticulate bodies (RB), are seen by electron microscopy. Rates of seropositivity to the organism are high in certain population groups, and S. negevensis has been associated with respiratory illness in humans. This study reports for the first time the ability of S. negevensis to survive and grow inside Acanthamoeba polyphaga in addition to its known ability to grow in cell cultures of human or simian origin. Infectivity of S. negevensis and growth in amoebae were monitored by immunoperoxidase assays. Long-term persistence and exponential growth of S. negevensis in amoebal trophozoites were demonstrated by infectivity assays and by electron microscopy. EB and dividing RB of S. negevensis were observed within inclusion bodies inside A. polyphaga. When S. negevensis-infected A. polyphaga amoebae were exposed to adverse conditions resulting in encystation of the amoebae, several possible outcomes were observed: cysts containing both normal amoebic cytoplasm and S. negevensis; cysts in which S. negevensis cells were relegated to the space between cyst walls; and cysts containing S. negevensis, but apparently lacking amoebal cytoplasm. S. negevensis within dried amoebal cysts was capable of long-term survival. The possibility that amoebae may have a role in natural transmission of S. negevensis needs to be investigated.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Virology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, P.O. Box 653, Beer Sheva, Israel 84105-IL. Phone: 972 8 640-0867. Fax: 972 8 627-6215. E-mail: maureen{at}bgumail.bgu.ac.il.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2001, p. 4789-4795, Vol. 67, No. 10
0099-2240/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/AEM.67.10.4789-4795.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Corsaro, D., Greub, G. (2006). Pathogenic Potential of Novel Chlamydiae and Diagnostic Approaches to Infections Due to These Obligate Intracellular Bacteria. Clin. Microbiol. Rev. 19: 283-297 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Everett, K. D. E., Thao, M., Horn, M., Dyszynski, G. E., Baumann, P. (2005). Novel chlamydiae in whiteflies and scale insects: endosymbionts 'Candidatus Fritschea bemisiae' strain Falk and 'Candidatus Fritschea eriococci' strain Elm. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 55: 1581-1587 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Collingro, A., Poppert, S., Heinz, E., Schmitz-Esser, S., Essig, A., Schweikert, M., Wagner, M., Horn, M. (2005). Recovery of an environmental chlamydia strain from activated sludge by co-cultivation with Acanthamoeba sp.. Microbiology 151: 301-309 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Kahane, S., Platzner, N., Dvoskin, B., Itzhaki, A., Friedman, M. G. (2004). Evidence for the Presence of Simkania negevensis in Drinking Water and in Reclaimed Wastewater in Israel. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 70: 3346-3351 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Greub, G., Raoult, D. (2004). Microorganisms Resistant to Free-Living Amoebae. Clin. Microbiol. Rev. 17: 413-433 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Marciano-Cabral, F., Cabral, G. (2003). Acanthamoeba spp. as Agents of Disease in Humans. Clin. Microbiol. Rev. 16: 273-307 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Abd, H., Johansson, T., Golovliov, I., Sandstrom, G., Forsman, M. (2003). Survival and Growth of Francisella tularensis in Acanthamoeba castellanii. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 69: 600-606 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»