Study of Protease Enzyme Activity of Blastocystis isolates from Gastrointestinal Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Subjects

Abstract

Blastocystis spp. is the most common eukaryotic parasite in the intestinal tract of humans and many animals. Its pathogenicity remains a matter of intense debate as the organism can be found in both symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. These discrepancies may be due to the varying pathogenic potential or virulence of the isolates studied.

The aim of the present work is to study the protease activity of Blastocystis isolates obtained from stool samples of symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals and its correlation with symptomatology and morphological forms. In addition the study included the analysis of the protein profiles of the Blastocystis isolates from symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects to assess the degree of heterogeneity.

The present study was performed over the period from September 2014 to February 2016 on subjects attending the Parasitology Diagnostic and Research Unit, Kasr Al-Aini, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University and the outpatient clinics of Cairo University hospitals. A total 150 faecal samples were subjected to parasitological examination to sc