Keywords
diagnosis methods
molecular
immunological
parasitological
How to Cite
Abstract
Cryptosporidium is a coccidian protozoan that causes diarrhea in human beings, domestic animals, and other vertebrates. Although cryptosporidiosis is self-limited disease in healthy individuals, patients with AIDS usually go through a prolonged life-threatening diarrhea. Cryptosporidiosis laboratory diagnosis
has been performed by means of parasite detection using parasitological, imunological, or molecular methods. In the present study 29 samples were selected, being 15 positive and 14 negative for Cryptosporidium on Kinyoun staining. All of 29 fecal samples were tested on Nested PCR (N-PCR), and 16
out 29 samples were N-PCR positive. Among these 16 N-PCR positive samples, 11 were positive on EIA and Kinyoun staining, and five were negative on both techniques. Kinyoun staining detected four positive samples though two of them were negative on N-PCR and EIA. The use of molecular method may
improve the diagnosis as the reported sensitivity and specificity rates have been higher the conventional techniques as morphology-based methods. Besides, molecular methods have lately been used to characterize the different genotype of C. parvum. Based on the data observed in the present study concerning the considerable discrepancies of results among three laboratory techniques , further investigations have to be performed
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