• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.387-390
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• 1995

In the present communication, YS-27, a Korean strain of Entnnloeba histoIWtica is described for the isolation and establishment of axonic cultivation. 5. histoLvticc, designated as strain "YS-27" was isolated from the pus of a hepatic abscess obtained from a 72 you old inpatient of August 10, 1969. Specimens, were obtained by needle aspiration, inoculated immediately and weekly cultured in a modified diphasic medium at 37℃. Strain YS-27 had been maintained for more than 15 years by weekly subculture until February, 1985. These cultures were transferred to a monoxenic TTY-SB medium seeded with a trypanosomatid of the genus CyithidiG. Penicillin G, 2 to 10 H 103 International units and Streptomycin, 2 to 10 mg per 100 ml, were added to the cultures to eliminate the bacteria. After more than one year later, these two organisms were well maintained by transfer every 3 or 4 days until .January. 1986 at 37℃ in TTY-SB medium in the absence of other microorganisms. These monoxenic cultures were then transferred to TYI-S-33 medium. Strain YS-27 alone had not been growing at the time of transfer, but when overlaid with Crithinia at intervals of 3 to 4 days, strain YS-27 propagated well. The Clthidio died out several weeks later after several passages. Beginning in April, 1986, strain YS-27. was successfully established in axonic culture in TYI-S-33 medium and has been maintained in continuous culture and multiplied well to present.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.58 no.2
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• pp.191-194
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• 2020

Free-living amoebas (FLAs) can cause severe disease in humans and animals when they become infected. However, there are no accurate survey reports on the prevalence of FLAs in Korea. In this study, we collected 163 tap water samples from buildings, apartments, and restrooms of highway service areas in 7 Korean provinces with high population density. All these buildings and facilities have water storage tanks in common. The survey was separated into categories of buildings, apartments, and highway service areas. Five hundred milliliters of tap water from each building was collected and filtered with 0.2 ㎛ pore filter paper. The filters were incubated in agar plates with heated E. coli at 25℃. After axenization, genomic DNA was collected from each FLA, and species classification was performed using partial 18S-rDNA PCR-sequencing analysis. We found that 12.9% of tap water from buildings with storage tanks in Korea was contaminated with FLAs. The highway service areas had the highest contamination rate at 33.3%. All of the FLAs, except one, were genetically similar to Vermamoeba vermiformis (Hartmannella vermiformis). The remaining FLA (KFA21) was very similar to Acanthamoeba lugdunensis (KA/E26). Although cases of human infection by V. vermiformis are very rare, we must pay attention to the fact that one-third of tap water supplies in highway service areas have been contaminated.