| Title |
Detection of Balamuthia mandrillaris DNA in the storage case of contact lenses in Germany
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Parasitology Research, March 2016
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s00436-016-4979-4 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Carsten Balczun, Patrick L. Scheid |
| Abstract |
Acanthamoeba spp. are frequently the etiological agents of a severe form of sight-threatening keratitis, called Acanthamoeba keratitis. The contact lens storage solution of a patient with keratitis of unknown genesis was screened using our diagnostic tools to detect potentially pathogenic free-living amoebae (FLA). Culture methods and a triplex quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) targeting Acanthamoeba spp., Naegleria fowleri, and Balamuthia mandrillaris were used in context of this routine screening. While no amoebae were detected by culture, qPCR specifically detected DNA of B. mandrillaris. This FLA is known as the etiological agent of a fatal form of encephalitis in humans and other mammals, Balamuthia amoebic encephalitis (BAE). A fragment of the 18S rDNA gene was amplified from the sample and showed 99 % sequence identity to B. mandrillaris sequences from GenBank. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of B. mandrillaris found in association with contact lenses. Although no viable amoeba was obtained by culturing efforts, the verification of B. mandrillaris DNA in the contact lens storage solution demonstrates how easily this pathogen might come into close contact with humans. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 2 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Austria | 1 | 50% |
| Unknown | 1 | 50% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 2 | 100% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 15 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Portugal | 1 | 7% |
| Unknown | 14 | 93% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Master | 3 | 20% |
| Student > Bachelor | 2 | 13% |
| Researcher | 2 | 13% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 2 | 13% |
| Lecturer > Senior Lecturer | 1 | 7% |
| Other | 2 | 13% |
| Unknown | 3 | 20% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 4 | 27% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 3 | 20% |
| Immunology and Microbiology | 2 | 13% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 2 | 13% |
| Unknown | 4 | 27% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 9. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 08 June 2017.
All research outputs
#4,194,118
of 24,885,505 outputs
Outputs from Parasitology Research
#219
of 3,975 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#61,180
of 305,602 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Parasitology Research
#10
of 123 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 24,885,505 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done well and is in the 82nd percentile: it's in the top 25% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 3,975 research outputs from this source. They receive a mean Attention Score of 3.0. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 94% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 305,602 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done well, scoring higher than 79% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 123 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 92% of its contemporaries.