Locally Acquired (Autochthonous) Mosquito-Transmitted Plasmodium vivax Malaria - Saline County, Arkansas, September 2023.

A case of locally acquired (autochthonous) mosquito-transmitted Plasmodium vivax malaria was diagnosed in Arkansas in September 2023. This represents the 10th autochthonous case identified nationally in 2023, after 20 years without recorded local mosquitoborne malaria transmission in the United States. The public health response included case investigation, active case surveillance, mosquito surveillance and control, assessment of medical countermeasures, and clinical and public outreach.

Evaluation of coccidia DNA in irrigation pond water and wastewater sludge associated with 18S rRNA gene qPCR detections.

Unlabelled: The coccidian parasite is the causative agent for foodborne outbreaks of cyclosporiasis disease and multiple annual fresh produce recalls. The aim of this study was to identify potential cross-reacting species for the 18S rRNA and MIT1C gene target real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assays. The environmental samples evaluated were irrigation pond water, produce wash water, and wastewater treatment sludge from a previous study with qPCR detections of by the 18S rRNA gene target qPCR.

Outbreak of Human Trichinellosis - Arizona, Minnesota, and South Dakota, 2022.

Trichinellosis is a parasitic zoonotic disease transmitted through the consumption of meat from animals infected with spp. nematodes. In North America, human trichinellosis is rare and is most commonly acquired through consumption of wild game meat.

Outbreak of Human Trichinellosis - Arizona, Minnesota, and South Dakota, 2022.

Trichinellosis is a parasitic zoonotic disease transmitted through the consumption of meat from animals infected with Trichinella spp. nematodes. In North America, human trichinellosis is rare and is most commonly acquired through consumption of wild game meat.

Genetic characterization and description of Leishmania (Leishmania) ellisi sp. nov.: a new human-infecting species from the USA.

In a 2018 report, an unusual case of cutaneous leishmaniasis was described in a 72-year-old female patient residing in Arizona, United States of America (USA). Preliminary analysis of the 18S rDNA and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase genes supported the conclusion that the Leishmania strain (strain 218-L139) isolated from this case was a novel species, though a complete taxonomic description was not provided. Identification of Leishmania at the species level is critical for clinical management and epidemiologic investigations so it is important that novel human-infecting species are characterized taxonomically and assigned a unique scientific name compliant with the ICZN code.

Surveillance for Soil-Transmitted Helminths in High-Risk County, Mississippi, USA.

Recent reports of hookworm infection in Alabama, USA, has prompted surveillance in Mississippi, given the states' similar environmental conditions. We collected stool specimens from 277 children in Rankin County, Mississippi. Kato-Katz microscopic smear, agar plate culture, and quantitative PCR indicated no soil-transmitted helminths.

Cross-Sectional Study of Soil-Transmitted Helminthiases in Black Belt Region of Alabama, USA.

We conducted a cross-sectional study to determine the prevalence of soil-transmitted helminthiases (STH) in areas of rural Alabama, USA, that have sanitation deficits. We enrolled 777 children; 704 submitted stool specimens and 227 a dried blood spot sample. We microscopically examined stool specimens from all 704 children by using Mini-FLOTAC for helminth eggs.

Simultaneous targeted amplicon deep sequencing and library preparation for a time and cost-effective universal parasite diagnostic sequencing approach.

We recently described a targeted amplicon deep sequencing (TADS) strategy that utilizes a nested PCR targeting the 18S rDNA gene of blood-borne parasites. The assay facilitates selective digestion of host DNA by targeting enzyme restriction sites present in vertebrates but absent in parasites. This enriching of parasite-derived amplicon drastically reduces the proportion of host-derived reads during sequencing and results in the sensitive detection of several clinically important blood parasites including Plasmodium spp.

Novel insights on the genetic population structure of human-infecting spp. and evidence for rapid subtype selection among isolates from the USA.

Human-infecting was recently characterized as three species, two of which ( and ) are currently responsible for all known human infections in the USA, yet much remains unknown about the genetic structure within these two species. Here, we investigate genotyping data from 2018 through 2022 to ascertain if there are temporal patterns in the genetic structure of parasites that cause infections in US residents from year to year. First, we investigate three levels of genetic characterization: species, subpopulation, and strain, to elucidate annual trends in infections.

Comparison of two novel one-tube nested real-time qPCR assays to detect human-infecting spp.

Human-infecting spp. cause gastrointestinal distress among healthy individuals contributing to morbidity and putting stress on the economics of countries and companies in the form of produce recalls. Accessible and easy-to-use diagnostic tools available to a wide variety of laboratories would aid in the early detection of possible outbreaks of cyclosporiasis.

Outbreak of Locally Acquired Mosquito-Transmitted (Autochthonous) Malaria - Florida and Texas, May-July 2023.

Eight cases of locally acquired, mosquito-transmitted (i.e., autochthonous) Plasmodium vivax malaria, which has not been reported in the United States since 2003, were reported to CDC from state health departments in Florida and Texas during May 18-July 17, 2023.

The limit of detection of the BioFire® FilmArray® gastrointestinal panel for the foodborne parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis.

Cyclosporiasis is a foodborne diarrheal illness caused by the parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis. The BioFire® FilmArray® gastrointestinal (FilmArray GI) panel is a common method for diagnosing cyclosporiasis from clinical stool samples. The currently published limit of detection (LOD) of this panel is in genome equivalents; however, it is unclear how this relates to the number of C.

Retrospective evaluation of an integrated molecular-epidemiological approach to cyclosporiasis outbreak investigations - United States, 2021.

Cyclosporiasis results from an infection of the small intestine by parasites after ingestion of contaminated food or water, often leading to gastrointestinal distress. Recent developments in temporally linking genetically related isolates demonstrated effectiveness in supporting epidemiological investigations. We used 'temporal-genetic clusters' (TGCs) to investigate reported cyclosporiasis cases in the United States during the 2021 peak-period (1 May - 31 August 2021).

Genetic characterization of infecting free-roaming African vervets () on the Caribbean island of St. Kitts.

Human strongyloidiasis is an important neglected tropical disease primarily caused by the nematode , and to a lesser extent which mainly infects non-human primates. Zoonotic sources of infection have important implications for control and prevention of morbidity and mortality caused by strongyloidiasis. Recent molecular evidence suggests that for primate host specificity is variable among genotypes across the Old World, and consequently that these types likely vary in their capacity for human spillover infections.

The Epidemiology and Clinical Features of Non-Keratitis Infections in the United States, 1956-2020.

Background: is a free-living ameba that can cause severe disease affecting the central nervous system, skin, sinuses, and other organs, particularly in immunocompromised individuals. These rare but severe infections are often fatal, yet incompletely described.

Methods: Cases included were either reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Free-Living Ameba program or published in scientific literature.

Application of a universal parasite diagnostic test to biological specimens collected from animals.

A previously described universal parasite diagnostic (nUPDx) based on PCR amplification of the 18S rDNA and deep-amplicon sequencing, can detect human blood parasites with a sensitivity comparable to real-time PCR. To date, the efficacy of this assay has only been assessed on human blood. This study assessed the utility of nUPDx for the detection of parasitic infections in animals using blood, tissues, and other biological sample types from mammals, birds, and reptiles, known to be infected with helminth, apicomplexan, or pentastomid parasites (confirmed by microscopy or PCR), as well as negative samples.

comprises at least 3 species that cause human cyclosporiasis.

The apicomplexan parasite causes seasonal foodborne outbreaks of the gastrointestinal illness cyclosporiasis. Prior to the coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic, annually reported cases were increasing in the USA, leading the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop a genotyping tool to complement cyclosporiasis outbreak investigations. Thousands of US isolates and 1 from China (strain CHN_HEN01) were genotyped by Illumina amplicon sequencing, revealing 2 lineages (A and B).

Neuroinvasive Infection in a Ten-Year-Old Girl.

The nematode is an emerging human pathogen. Though its life cycle is not well studied, it likely infects humans after a bite from a black fly vector, which in turn acquires infective microfilariae from an infected canid. These microfilariae mature into an infective larval stage within the fly.

A Pilot Comparison of Fixatives for Hookworm Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction.

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is increasingly used in the diagnosis of soil-transmitted helminth infections. Despite this, few studies have evaluated the impact of different fecal fixatives on the outcome of fecal helminth qPCR analysis, and none have evaluated the effect of commercial parasitology fixatives commonly used in diagnostic laboratories. We fixed dog feces containing Ancylostoma spp.

Evaluation of various distance computation methods for construction of haplotype-based phylogenies from large MLST datasets.

Multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) is widely used to investigate genetic relationships among eukaryotic taxa, including parasitic pathogens. MLST analysis workflows typically involve construction of alignment-based phylogenetic trees - i.e.

Assessing an Adaptation of the Universal Parasite Diagnostic Assay for Bloodborne Parasites in a US State Public Health Laboratory.

For complex clinical cases where a parasitic infection is suspected, it can be difficult for clinicians to recommend an appropriate laboratory test. These tests are usually pathogen-specific and require a certain degree of suspicion for the precise etiology. A recently described assay, the universal parasite diagnostic (UPDx) can potentially provide a diagnosis of any parasite present in a specimen.

Genotyping Cyclospora cayetanensis From Multiple Outbreak Clusters With An Emphasis on a Cluster Linked to Bagged Salad Mix-United States, 2020.

Cyclosporiasis is a diarrheal illness caused by the foodborne parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis. Annually reported cases have been increasing in the United States prompting development of genotyping tools to aid cluster detection. A recently developed Cyclospora genotyping system based on 8 genetic markers was applied to clinical samples collected during the cyclosporiasis peak period of 2020, facilitating assessment of its epidemiologic utility.

RPAcan3990: an Ultrasensitive Recombinase Polymerase Assay To Detect DNA.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis is one of the leading causes of eosinophilic meningitis worldwide. A field-deployable molecular detection method could enhance both environmental surveillance and clinical diagnosis of this emerging pathogen. Accordingly, RPAcan3990, a recombinase polymerase assay (RPA), was developed to target a region predicted to be highly repeated in the A.