Characterization of novel extracellular proteases produced by Acanthamoeba castellanii after contact with human corneal epithelial cells and their relevance to pathogenesis.

Background: Proteases produced by Acanthamoeba spp. play an important role in their virulence and may be the key to understanding Acanthamoeba pathogenesis; thus, increasing attention has been directed towards these proteins. The present study aimed to investigate the lytic factors produced by Acanthamoeba castellanii during the first hours of in vitro co-culture with human corneal epithelial cells (HCECs).