The present study was conducted to evaluate the methanolic extracts from several plant leaves widely used in traditional medicine to cure digestive tract disorders and in the self-medication of wild animals such as non-human primates, namely Archidendron fagifolium, Diospyros sumatrana, Shorea sumatrana, and Piper betle leaves, with regard to their antimicrosporidial activity against Encephalitozoon cuniculi in immunocompetent BALB/c mice determined using molecular detection of microsporidial DNA (qPCR) in various tissues and body fluids of infected, treated mice. Of the plant extracts tested, Diospyros sumatrana provided the most promising results, reducing spore shedding by 88% compared to untreated controls. Moreover, total burden per 1 g of tissue in the D. sumatrana extract-treated group reached 87% reduction compared to untreated controls, which was comparable to the effect of the standard drug, Albendazole. This data represents the baseline necessary for further research focused on determining the structure, activity and modes of action of the active compounds, mainly of D. sumatrana, enabling subsequent development of antimicrosporidial remedies.
- MeSH
- albendazol farmakologie terapeutické užití MeSH
- antifungální látky farmakologie terapeutické užití MeSH
- Cercopithecus aethiops MeSH
- dimethylsulfoxid farmakologie terapeutické užití MeSH
- Diospyros chemie MeSH
- Dipterocarpaceae chemie MeSH
- DNA fungální izolace a purifikace MeSH
- Encephalitozoon cuniculi účinky léků MeSH
- encephalitozoonóza farmakoterapie MeSH
- Fabaceae chemie MeSH
- feces parazitologie MeSH
- gastrointestinální trakt mikrobiologie MeSH
- imunokompetence MeSH
- listy rostlin chemie MeSH
- myši inbrední BALB C MeSH
- myši MeSH
- Piper betle chemie MeSH
- rostlinné extrakty farmakologie terapeutické užití MeSH
- spory hub účinky léků MeSH
- Vero buňky MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- myši MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Indonésie MeSH
BACKGROUND: Orangutans are critically endangered primarily due to loss and fragmentation of their natural habitat. This could bring them into closer contact with humans and increase the risk of zoonotic pathogen transmission. AIMS: To describe the prevalence and diversity of Cryptosporidium spp., microsporidia and Giardia intestinalis in orangutans at seven sites on Sumatra and Kalimantan, and to evaluate the impact of orangutans' habituation and location on the occurrence of these zoonotic protists. RESULT: The overall prevalence of parasites in 298 examined animals was 11.1%. The most prevalent microsporidia was Encephalitozoon cuniculi genotype II, found in 21 animals (7.0%). Enterocytozoon bieneusi genotype D (n = 5) and novel genotype Pongo 2 were detected only in six individuals (2.0%). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of these parasites in orangutans. Eight animals were positive for Cryptosporidium spp. (2.7%), including C. parvum (n = 2) and C. muris (n = 6). Giardia intestinalis assemblage B, subtype MB6, was identified in a single individual. While no significant differences between the different human contact level groups (p = 0.479-0.670) or between the different islands (p = 0.992) were reported in case of E. bieneusi or E. cuniculi, Cryptosporidium spp. was significantly less frequently detected in wild individuals (p < 2×10-16) and was significantly more prevalent in orangutans on Kalimantan than on Sumatra (p < 2×10-16). CONCLUSION: Our results revealed that wild orangutans are significantly less frequently infected by Cryptosporidium spp. than captive and semi-wild animals. In addition, this parasite was more frequently detected at localities on Kalimantan. In contrast, we did not detect any significant difference in the prevalence of microsporidia between the studied groups of animals. The sources and transmission modes of infections were not determined, as this would require repeated sampling of individuals, examination of water sources, and sampling of humans and animals sharing the habitat with orangutans.
- MeSH
- Cryptosporidium * MeSH
- Encephalitozoon * MeSH
- Enterocytozoon * MeSH
- Giardia lamblia * MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- nemoci lidoopů * epidemiologie parazitologie přenos MeSH
- parazitární nemoci střev * epidemiologie parazitologie přenos MeSH
- Pongo abelii parazitologie MeSH
- Pongo pygmaeus parazitologie MeSH
- prevalence MeSH
- protozoální infekce zvířat * epidemiologie parazitologie přenos MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- lidé MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Borneo MeSH
- Indonésie MeSH