Details:

Alternative Title:
PLoS Negl Trop Dis
Personal Author:
Conrad, Melissa D. ; Gorman, Andrew W. ; Schillinger, Julia A. ; Fiori, Pier Luigi ; Arroyo, Rossana ; ... More +
Conrad, Melissa D. ; Gorman, Andrew W. ; Schillinger, Julia A. ; Fiori, Pier Luigi ; Arroyo, Rossana ; Malla, Nancy ; Dubey, Mohan Lal ; Gonzalez, Jorge ; Blank, Susan ; Secor, William E. ; Carlton, Jane M. Less -
Description:
Background

Trichomonas vaginalis is the causative agent of human trichomoniasis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted infection world-wide. Despite its prevalence, little is known about the genetic diversity and population structure of this haploid parasite due to the lack of appropriate tools. The development of a panel of microsatellite makers and SNPs from mining the parasite's genome sequence has paved the way to a global analysis of the genetic structure of the pathogen and association with clinical phenotypes.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Here we utilize a panel of T. vaginalis-specific genetic markers to genotype 235 isolates from Mexico, Chile, India, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Italy, Africa and the United States, including 19 clinical isolates recently collected from 270 women attending New York City sexually transmitted disease clinics. Using population genetic analysis, we show that T. vaginalis is a genetically diverse parasite with a unique population structure consisting of two types present in equal proportions world-wide. Parasites belonging to the two types (type 1 and type 2) differ significantly in the rate at which they harbor the T. vaginalis virus, a dsRNA virus implicated in parasite pathogenesis, and in their sensitivity to the widely-used drug, metronidazole. We also uncover evidence of genetic exchange, indicating a sexual life-cycle of the parasite despite an absence of morphologically-distinct sexual stages.

Conclusions/Significance

Our study represents the first robust and comprehensive evaluation of global T. vaginalis genetic diversity and population structure. Our identification of a unique two-type structure, and the clinically relevant phenotypes associated with them, provides a new dimension for understanding T. vaginalis pathogenesis. In addition, our demonstration of the possibility of genetic exchange in the parasite has important implications for genetic research and control of the disease.


Subject:
[+]
Adult
Animals
Antiprotozoal Agents
Cluster Analysis
Drug Resistance
Female
Genetic Variation
Global Health
Humans
Metronidazole
Microsatellite Repeats
Molecular Sequence Data
Phylogeny
Sequence Analysis, DNA
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Trichomonas Infections
Trichomonas Vaginalis

Source:
PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2012; 6(3).
Document Type:
Journal Article
Collection(s):
CDC Public Access
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:0a274131c55f6b9e61e0d554972eb1ede93539beba414d80143cae7f1e288858
File Type:

Supporting Files

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  	pntd.0001573.s007.doc	doc
  	pntd.0001573.s008.doc	doc
  	license.txt	txt
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  	pntd.0001573.g002.jpg	jpeg
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