Blastocystis isolates from symptomatic individuals behave differently

Since Blastocystis occurs in individuals with and without symptoms, the clinical community has a strong interest in differences that exist between those two types of infections.  Researchers comparing Blastocystis isolates from symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals report that isolates from symptomatic individuals exhibited a higher degree of production of a Capase-like proteases, chemicals which cleave other proteins and are involved in the process of programmed cell death.  Most interestingly, three different genetically distinct subtypes of Blastocystis exhibited this behavior, with subtypes 1, 3, and 5 from symptomatic individuals showing different behavior from subtypes 1, 3, and 5 from asymptomatic individuals.  The full study has been published in BMC Parasites and Vectors.

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