Giardia lamblia, the protist that causes diarrhea, makes an Asn-linked-glycan (N-glycan) precursor that contains just two sugars (GlcNAc(2)) attached by a pyrophosphate linkage to a polyprenol lipid. Because the candidate cis-prenyltransferase of Giardia appears to be more similar to bacterial enzymes than to those of most eukaryotes and because Giardia is missing a candidate dolichol kinase (o...

Despite many reports on the shedding of Giardia parasites by scouring calves, the role of Giardia as a cause of calf diarrhea is still controversial. To elucidate the role of Giardia duodenalis in calf scours, diagnostic samples from 189 scouring calves were tested by different assays during a 1-year-study period. Giardia antigens were detected in 22/189 scouring calves by a fecal-based enzyme-...

BACKGROUND Giardia is a leading but neglected cause of infectious gastroenteritis worldwide and is treatable. There is a substantial burden of undetected Giardia in the UK and for every one case of Giardia reported to national surveillance there are 14 cases in the community. We aimed to ascertain the prevalence of, and risk factors associated with secondary household Giardia infections to asse...

Giardia and Cryptosporidium are protozoan parasites known to cause enteric disease in terrestrial wildlife species (mammals, reptiles and birds). Few surveys for Giardia and Cryptosporidium in marine wildlife species, such as pinnipeds, have been reported. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and genotype of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in two species of pinnipeds, harp se...

Sequence analysis of the small subunit ribosomal DNA (SSU-rDNA) and elongation factor 1 alpha (ef1α) was performed on Giardia cysts isolated from faeces collected from a quenda (Isoodon obesulus) in the southwest of Western Australia. The SSU-rDNA and ef1α were sequenced in their entirety and correspondingly aligned with the published sequence information of other known species and genotypes of...

BACKGROUND Giardia spp. are flagellated protozoan parasites that infect humans and many other vertebrates worldwide. Currently seven species of Giardia are considered valid. RESULTS Here, we report a new species, Giardia cricetidarum n. sp. in hamsters. Trophozoites of G. cricetidarum n. sp. are pear-shaped with four pairs of flagella and measure on average 14 μm (range 12-18 μm) in length an...

The methionyl-tRNA synthetase (MetRS) is a novel drug target for the protozoan pathogen Giardia intestinalis. This protist contains a single MetRS that is distinct from the human cytoplasmic MetRS. A panel of MetRS inhibitors was tested against recombinant Giardia MetRS, Giardia trophozoites, and mammalian cell lines. The best compounds inhibited trophozoite growth at 500 nM (metronidazole did ...

A survey to estimate the prevalence of Giardia infections was conducted using a commercial Giardia antigen test kit (IDEXX SNAP® Giardia Test; IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., Westbrook, ME) in 1,837 dogs and 462 cats brought to participating clinics in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The overall estimated prevalence of Giardia infection was 9.7% in dogs and 15.6% in cats, and was lowest for animals six ...

The risk of Giardia duodenalis (Giardia) infection in farmers using untreated wastewater in agriculture was investigated in the city of Faisalabad, Pakistan, through a cross-sectional study. The study found a significantly increased risk of (asymptomatic) Giardia infection in wastewater farming households when compared with farming households using regular (non-wastewater) irrigation water (OR ...