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Antibiotics (Basel) 2022 May 31;11(6). Epub 2022 May 31.

Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Sharjah, Sharjah 27272, United Arab Emirates.

  and are pathogenic free-living amoebae that infect the central nervous system with over 95% mortality rates. Although several compounds have shown promise in vitro but associated side effects and/or prolonged approval processes for clinical applications have led to limited success. To overcome this, drug repurposing of marketed compounds with known mechanism of action is considered a viable approach that has potential to expedite discovery and application of anti-amoebic compounds. Read More

Biochemistry 2022 Jun 22. Epub 2022 Jun 22.

Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Center for Discovery and Innovation in Parasitic Diseases, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States.

is a free-living amoeba that can cause severe eye and brain infections in humans. At present, there is no uniformly effective treatment for any of these infections. However, sterol 14α-demethylases (CYP51s), heme-containing cytochrome P450 enzymes, are known to be validated drug targets in pathogenic fungi and protozoa. Read More

Antibiotics (Basel) 2022 Apr 19;11(5). Epub 2022 Apr 19.

Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Sharjah, Sharjah 27272, United Arab Emirates.

and are free-living, opportunistic protists, distributed widely in the environment. They are responsible for primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) and granulomatous amoebic encephalitis (GAE), the fatal central nervous infections with mortality rates exceeding 90%. With the rise of global warming and water shortages resulting in water storage in tanks (where these amoebae may reside), the risk of infection is increasing. Read More

Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2022 Jun 23;66(6):e0237321. Epub 2022 May 23.

Eukaryotic Pathogens Innovation Center, Department of Genetics and Biochemistry, Clemson Universitygrid.26090.3d, Clemson, South Carolina, USA.

Infection with pathogenic free-living amoebae, including Naegleria fowleri, spp., and Balamuthia mandrillaris, can lead to life-threatening illnesses, primarily because of catastrophic central nervous system involvement. Efficacious treatment options for these infections are lacking, and the mortality rate due to infection is high. Read More

Front Pediatr 2022 8;10:785735. Epub 2022 Apr 8.

Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.

In China, a 9-year-old boy was transferred to the hospital with fever, vomiting, and headache. The disease rapidly deteriorated into vague consciousness. Applying conventional clinical examinations such as blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tests, the diagnosis of bacterial meningoencephalitis was first drawn, and expectant treatments were adopted immediately. Read More

Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2022 Apr 11;106(8):3279-3291. Epub 2022 Apr 11.

Department of Biological Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, 47500, Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.

Brain-eating amoebae, including Acanthamoeba castellanii and Naegleria fowleri, are the causative agents of devastating central nervous system infections with extreme mortality rates. There is an indisputable urgency for the development of effective chemotherapeutic agents for the control of these diseases that are increasing in incidence. Here, we evaluated the anti-amoebic potential of polyaniline:tungsten disulphide (PANI:WS) nanocomposite against the infective trophozoite and cyst stages of N. Read More

Acta Trop 2022 Jul 1;231:106440. Epub 2022 Apr 1.

Department of Biological Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia. Electronic address:

Acanthamoeba spp. are free living amoebae which can give rise to Acanthamoeba keratitis and granulomatous amoebic encephalitis. The surface of Acanthamoeba contains ergosterol which is an important target for drug development against eukaryotic microorganisms. Read More

J Pak Med Assoc 2022 03;72(3):594

3rd Year MBBS Student, Ziauddin Medical University, Karachi, Pakistan.

Acta Parasitol 2022 Jun 16;67(2):1032-1034. Epub 2022 Mar 16.

Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Sharjah, University City, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.

Naegleria fowleri, a well-known brain-eating amoeba, induces high mortality with no available effective treatment. Ionic liquids are compounds that contain a variety of cations and anions that can be tailored to specific applications. Based on the biological, chemical and physical properties of these ionic liquids, this work proposes the use of ionic liquids as novel anti-Naegleria fowleri biocides. Read More

Biomed Pharmacother 2022 May 11;149:112816. Epub 2022 Mar 11.

Instituto Universitario de Bio-Orgánica Antonio González (IUBO AG), Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Avenida Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez 2, 38206 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain; Departamento de Química Orgánica, Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Avenida Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez s/n, 38206 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain. Electronic address:

Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) is a central nervous system (CNS) disease caused by Naegleria fowleri that mainly affects children and young adults with fatal consequences in most of the cases. Treatment protocols are based on the combination of different antimicrobial agents, nonetheless there is the need to develop new anti-Naegleria compounds with low toxicity and full effects compared to the currently used drug combination. The marine environment is a well-established source of bioactive natural products. Read More

Microbiol Spectr 2022 02 9;10(1):e0189921. Epub 2022 Feb 9.

Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases, Athens, Georgia, USA.

The free-living amoeba Naegleria fowleri, which typically dwells within warm, freshwater environments, can opportunistically cause primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a disease with a mortality rate of >97%. The lack of positive treatment outcomes for PAM has prompted the discovery and development of more effective therapeutics, yet most studies utilize only one or two clinical isolates. The inability to assess possible heterogenic responses to drugs among isolates from various geographical regions hinders progress in the discovery of more effective drugs. Read More

J Ayub Med Coll Abbottabad 2021 Oct-Dec;33(4):547-548

Ziauddin Medical University, Karachi, Pakistan.

Pathog Glob Health 2022 Feb 3:1-10. Epub 2022 Feb 3.

Medical Faculty, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.

Free-living amoebae (FLA) are considered environmental pathogens and thus pose a public health threat. Their ubiquity in natural sources may magnify the potential severity of health outcomes in the future. However, less attention was given despite several probable public health risks that arise from the presence of pathogenic strains in the environment. Read More

Acta Parasitol 2022 Jun 12;67(2):697-704. Epub 2022 Jan 12.

Faculty of Medicine, Department of Parasitology, Tokat Gaziosmanpasa University, Tokat, Turkey.

Background: Naegleria fowleri, the causative agent of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), is a free-living amoeba. It is a water-borne infection usually detected in children and young people with healthy immune system who swim, dive and perform activities in fresh and hot springs.

Purpose: In this study, it was aimed to raise awareness in the differential diagnosis of meningitis etiopathogenesis by showing that N. Read More

J Eukaryot Microbiol 2022 03 26;69(2):e12881. Epub 2022 Jan 26.

Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, USA.

Naegleria fowleri is a pathogenic, free-living amoeba that causes primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a highly fatal disease of the central nervous system. N. fowleri demonstrates three forms: the trophozoite, flagellate, and cyst. Read More

Interdiscip Perspect Infect Dis 2021 6;2021:1823957. Epub 2021 Dec 6.

Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.

Rituals are an integral part of human life but a wide range of rituals (both religious and non-religious), from self-flagellation to blood brotherhood to ritual sprinkling of holy water, have been associated with transmission of infections. These infections include angiostrongyliasis, anthrax, brucellosis, cholera, COVID-19, cutaneous larva migrans, Ebola, hepatitis viruses, herpes simplex virus, HIV, human T-cell leukemia virus (HTLV), kuru, , meningoencephalitis, orf, rift valley fever, and sporotrichosis. Education and community engagement are important cornerstones in mitigating infectious risks associated with rituals. Read More

BMC Infect Dis 2021 Dec 14;21(1):1251. Epub 2021 Dec 14.

Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, 6 Shuangyong Road, Qingxiu District, Nanning, China.

Background: Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) is a rare, acute and fatal disease of the central nervous system caused by infection with Naegleria fowleri (Heggie, in Travel Med Infect Dis 8:201-6, 2010). Presently, the majority of reported cases in the literature have been diagnosed through pathogen detection pathogens in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). This report highlights the first case of pediatric PAM diagnosed with amoeba infiltration within CSF and bloodstream of an 8-year-old male child, validated through meta-genomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS). Read More

Travel Med Infect Dis 2022 Jan-Feb;45:102235. Epub 2021 Dec 11.

Department of Life Sciences, School of Science, University of Management and Technology (UMT), Lahore, Pakistan. Electronic address:

Sci Total Environ 2022 Feb 24;806(Pt 2):150562. Epub 2021 Sep 24.

Marine College, Shandong University, Weihai, Shandong 264209, PR China. Electronic address:

The aim of this review is to identify the worldwide trend of waterborne protozoan outbreaks and how it varies between geographic regions during the period from 2017 to 2020. Data about waterborne protozoan outbreaks were gathered and stratified by continent, country, water source, and protozoan species associated with the outbreak. The highest prevalence of waterborne protozoan outbreaks was reported in developed countries. Read More

Front Med 2021 Dec 26;15(6):842-866. Epub 2021 Nov 26.

Department of Medical Microbiology, Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology of Ministries of Education and Health, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.

Among various genera of free-living amoebae prevalent in nature, some members are identified as causative agents of human encephalitis, in which Naegleria fowleri followed by Acanthamoeba spp. and Balamuthia mandrillaris have been successively discovered. As the three dominant genera responsible for infections, Acanthamoeba and Balamuthia work as opportunistic pathogens of granulomatous amoebic encephalitis in immunocompetent and immunocompromised individuals, whereas Naegleria induces primary amoebic meningoencephalitis mostly in healthy children and young adults as a more violent and deadly disease. Read More

Trends Parasitol 2022 03 8;38(3):230-245. Epub 2021 Nov 8.

Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address:

Naegleria fowleri, Balamuthia mandrillaris, and Acanthamoeba spp. can cause devastating brain infections in humans which almost always result in death. The symptoms of the three infections overlap, but brain inflammation and the course of the disease differ, depending on the amoeba that is responsible. Read More

Sci Rep 2021 11 4;11(1):21664. Epub 2021 Nov 4.

Seattle Structural Genomics Center for Infectious Disease (SSGCID), Seattle, WA, USA.

Balamuthia mandrillaris, a pathogenic free-living amoeba, causes cutaneous skin lesions as well as granulomatous amoebic encephalitis, a 'brain-eating' disease. As with the other known pathogenic free-living amoebas (Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba species), drug discovery efforts to combat Balamuthia infections of the central nervous system are sparse; few targets have been validated or characterized at the molecular level, and little is known about the biochemical pathways necessary for parasite survival. Current treatments of encephalitis due to B. Read More

Korean J Parasitol 2021 Oct 22;59(5):501-505. Epub 2021 Oct 22.

Department of Environmental Medical Biology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea.

The pathogenic free-living amoeba Naegleria fowleri causes primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, a fatal infection, by penetrating the nasal mucosa and migrating to the brain via the olfactory nerves. N. fowleri can induce host cell death via lytic necrosis. Read More

Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2021 Oct 1;14(10). Epub 2021 Oct 1.

Instituto Universitario de Enfermedades Tropicales y Salud Pública de Canarias, Universidad de La Laguna, Avda, Astrofísico Fco. Sánchez, S/N, 38203 La Laguna, Spain.

Primary amoebic encephalitis (PAM) caused by the opportunistic pathogen is characterized as a rapid and lethal infection of the brain which ends in the death of the patient in more than 90% of the reported cases. This amoeba thrives in warm water bodies and causes infection after individuals perform risky activities such as splashing or diving, mostly in non-treated water bodies such as lakes and ponds. Moreover, the infection progresses very fast and no fully effective molecules have currently been found to treat PAM. Read More

Ann Lab Med 2022 Mar;42(2):196-202

Department of Environmental Medical Biology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Arthropods of Medical Importance Resource Bank, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

Background: Identifying the causal pathogen of encephalitis remains a clinical challenge. A 50-year-old man without a history of neurological disease was referred to our department for the evaluation of an intracranial lesion observed on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, and the pathology results suggested protozoal infection. We identified the species responsible for encephalitis using thymine-adenine (TA) cloning, suitable for routine clinical practice. Read More

Int J Parasitol Drugs Drug Resist 2021 12 2;17:139-149. Epub 2021 Oct 2.

Instituto Universitario de Enfermedades Tropicales y Salud Pública de Canarias, Universidad de La Laguna, Avda. Astrofísico Fco. Sánchez, S/N, La Laguna, Tenerife, 38203, Islas Canarias, Spain; Departamento de Obstetricia, Ginecología, Pediatría, Medicina Preventiva y Salud Pública, Toxicología, Medicina Legal y Forense y Parasitología, Universidad De La Laguna, La Laguna, Tenerife, 38203, Islas Canarias, Spain; Red de Investigación Colaborativa en Enfermedades Tropicales (RICET), Spain; Consorcio Centro De Investigacion Biomedica En Red M.P. (CIBER) de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Inst. de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain. Electronic address:

The Free-Living Amoeba species, Naegleria fowleri is the causative agent of a lethal encephalitis known as Primary Amoebic Encephalitis (PAM). Moreover, most of the reported cases are often related to swimming and/or diving in aquatic environments. In addition, the current therapeutic options against PAM are not fully effective and hence, there is an urgent need to develop novel therapeutic agents against this disease. Read More

Pathog Glob Health 2022 Mar 2;116(2):70-84. Epub 2021 Oct 2.

College of Arts and Sciences, American University of Sharjah, Sharjah, UAE.

Pathogenic free-living amoebae affecting the central nervous system are known to cause granulomatous amoebic encephalitis (GAE) or primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). Although hosts with impaired immunity are generally at a higher risk of severe disease, amoebae such as and can instigate disease in otherwise immunocompetent individuals, whereas species mostly infect immunocompromised people. also cause a sight-threatening eye infection, mostly in contact lens wearers. Read More

Biomolecules 2021 09 6;11(9). Epub 2021 Sep 6.

Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Anáhuac México Campus Norte, Huixquilucan 52786, Estado de México, Mexico.

is a free-living amoeba (FLA) that is commonly known as the "brain-eating amoeba." This parasite can invade the central nervous system (CNS), causing an acute and fulminating infection known as primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). Even though PAM is characterized by low morbidity, it has shown a mortality rate of 98%, usually causing death in less than two weeks after the initial exposure. Read More

Iran J Parasitol 2021 Apr-Jun;16(2):295-304

Student Research Committee, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.

Background: Free-living amoeba (FLA) belonging to spp, , and are the soil-born protozoa. This study aimed to survey the occurrence of FLA, including spp, , spp., and spp. Read More

ACS Chem Neurosci 2021 10 21;12(19):3579-3587. Epub 2021 Sep 21.

Department of Biological Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Subang Jaya 47500, Selangor, Malaysia.

Free-living amoebae include and that are opportunistic protozoa responsible for life-threatening central nervous system infections with mortality rates over 90%. The rising number of cases and high mortality rates are indicative of the critical unmet need for the development of efficient drugs in order to avert future deaths. In this study, we assess the anti-amoebic capacity of a conducting polymer nanocomposite comprising polyaniline (PANI) and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) against and . Read More