Molecular diagnosis and subtyping of Blastocystis sp.: Association with clinical, colonoscopic, and histopathological findings

INTRODUCTION: Blastocystis sp. is the most common parasitic infestation in humans. However, its pathogenicity remains controversial. Our aim was to study the prevalence of Blastocystis sp. parasite subtypes in patients with gastrointestinal manifestations referred for colonoscopy and assess possible correlation with clinical, colonoscopic, and histopathological findings. METHODOLOGY: One hundred patients with gastrointestinal manifestations referred for colonoscopy were enrolled. Stool samples were collected and examined both microscopically and by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for detection of Blastocystis sp. Subtyping was done for positive samples by qPCR and confirmed by sequencing. RESULTS: qPCR sensitivity far exceeded microscopy in detection of Blastocystis sp. (58% vs. 31%, agreement 38.5%). The most commonly detected subtype was 3 (50%), followed by 2 (32.8%) and 4 (13.8%). Abdominal pain was the most common clinical symptom; inflammation and colitis were the most common abnormal colonoscopic and histopathological findings. The most frequent subtype encountered in those findings was Subtype 3. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed the importance of using qPCR in diagnosis of Blastocystis sp. An association between abnormal clinical, colonoscopic, and histopathological findings on the one hand, and Blastocystis sp. infestation, especially Subtype 3, on the other hand, is also posed. This necessitates further studies to assess the mechanism of association with pathogenicity.