In vitro growth, cytopathic effects and clearance of monolayers by clinical isolates of Balamuthia mandrillaris in human skin cell cultures

• Published in: Experimental parasitology Vol. 156; pp. 61 - 67
• Main Authors: Yera, Hélène, Dupouy-Camet, Jean, Jackson, Jonathan W., Sriram, Rama, Sweat, Stacey, Goldstein, Jason M., Visvesvara, Govinda S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01-09-2015
• Subjects: Acanthamoeba castellanii; Acanthamoeba castellanii - growth & development; Acanthamoeba castellanii - pathogenicity; Animals; Balamuthia mandrillaris; Balamuthia mandrillaris - growth & development; Balamuthia mandrillaris - pathogenicity; Cell culture; Cell Line; Child; Cytopathic effect; Endothelium, Vascular - cytology; Endothelium, Vascular - parasitology; Female; Fibroblasts - cytology; Fibroblasts - parasitology; Human skin; Humans; Keratinocytes - parasitology; Lung - cytology; Lung - parasitology; Naegleria fowleri; Papio; Pregnancy; Skin - cytology; Skin - parasitology; Soil - parasitology; Cell culture; Human skin; Cytopathic effect; Balamuthia mandrillaris
• ISSN: 0014-4894; 1090-2449
• DOI: 10.1016/j.exppara.2015.05.004

•Since Balamuthia causes skin infection it probably feeds on skin cells.•This study examined the capacity of Balamuthia to feed and grow on skin cell lines.•Balamuthia failed to grow on and destroy the human skin keratinocyte cell line.•These results supported that the intact epidermis is a barrier for Balamuthia.
Balamuthia mandrillaris is a free-living ameba (FLA) that has been isolated or its DNA identified in soil, dust and water. It causes a fatal central nervous system infection in humans and animals. Although it is environmental as Acanthamoeba and Naegleria fowleri, the two other free-living amebae that also cause CNS infections in humans and other animals, Balamuthia does not feed on bacteria as the other FLA. In the laboratory, it can be grown on a variety of mammalian cell cultures. In this study we examined the ability of three different Balamuthia isolates to grow on several different human skin cell cultures including the WT/A keratinocyte cell cultures. A corneal isolate of Acanthamoeba castellanii was used for comparison.