Curcumin prevents bile canalicular alterations in the liver of hamsters infected with Opisthorchis viverrini.

Opisthorchis viverrini infection causes inflammation and liver injury leading to periductal fibrosis. Little is known about the pathological alterations in bile canaliculi in opisthorchiasis. This study aimed to investigate bile canalicular alterations in O. viverrini-infected hamsters and to examine the chemopreventive effects of curcumin on such changes. Hamsters were infected with O. viverrini and one group of animals was fed with 1% dietary curcumin supplement. Animals were examined during the acute infection phase, days 21 and 30 post-infection (PI) and chronic infection phase (day 90 PI). Scanning electron microscopy revealed that in the infected group fed with a normal diet, bile canaliculi became slightly tortuous by 30 day PI and more tortuous at day 90 PI. Transmission electron microscopy showed a reduction in microvilli density of canaliculi starting at day 30 PI, with a marked loss of microvilli at day 90 PI. These ultrastructral changes were slightly seen at day 21 PI, which was similar to that found in infected animals fed with 1% curcumin-supplemented diet. Notably, curcumin treatment prevented the reduction of microvilli density, reduced the dilation of bile canaliculi, and decreased the tortuosity of the bile canaliculi relative to non-infected animals on a normal diet at days 30 and 90 PI. These results suggest that curcumin reduces alteration of bile canaliculi and may be a promising agent to prevent the onset of bile duct abnormalities induced by O. viverrini infection.

Ultrastructure of spermatogenesis in the testis of Paragonimus heterotremus.

Lung fluke, Paragonimus heterotremus, is a flatworm causing pulmonary paragonimiasis in cats, dogs, and humans in Southeast Asia. We examined the ultrastructure of the testis of adult P. heterotremus with special attention to spermatogenesis and spermiogenesis using scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The full sequence of spermatogenesis and spermiogenesis, from the capsular basal lamina to the luminal surface, was demonstrated. The sequence comprises spermatogonia, spermatocytes with obvious nuclear synaptonemal complexes, spermatids, and eventual spermatozoa. Moreover, full steps of spermatid differentiation were shown which consisted of 1) early stage, 2) differentiation stage representing the flagella, intercentriolar body, basal body, striated rootlets, and electron dense nucleus of thread-like lamellar configuration, and 3) growing spermatid flagella. Detailed ultrastructure of 2 different types of spermatozoa was also shown in this study.

Ultrastructural effects of albendazole on the body wall of Gnathostoma spinigerum third stage larvae.

This study investigated the effects of albendazole (ABZ) on the ultrastructure of Gnathostoma spinigerum advanced third-stage larvae. Two groups of experimentally infected mice received 60 or 90 mg/kg ABZ orally once a day for 21 consecutive days. Both groups had damage to the body walls of the worms, especially to the non-contractile part of the muscular layer. The severity of the damage was dose related, the higher the dose, the greater the damage. The body wall of the ABZ treated larvae demonstrated a decrease in the number of mitochondria in the non-contractile muscular part, especially in the internal surface of the sarcolemma. Some mitochondria developed large vacuoles, and became distorted and degenerated. The nuclei degenerated and had irregular shapes and the number of glycogen granules decreased. The present study demonstrates the structural damage induced by the toxic effects of ABZ and increases our knowledge of the mechanism of action of ABZ against G. spinigerum.

Organization of the nervous system in Opisthorchis viverrini investigated by histochemical and immunohistochemical study.

The structure and organization of the nervous system has been documented for various helminth parasites. However, the neuroanatomy of the carcinogenic liver fluke, Opisthorchis viverrini has not been described. This study therefore investigated the organization of the nervous system of this fluke using cholinesterase activity, aminergic and peptidergic (FMRFamide-like peptides) immunostaining to tag major neural elements. The nervous system, as detected by acetylcholinesterase (AchE) reaction, was similar in newly excysted metacercariae, migrating juveniles and adult parasites. In these stages, there were three pairs (dorsal, ventral and lateral) of bilaterally symmetrical longitudinal nerve cords and two cerebral ganglia. The ventral nerve cords and the cerebral ganglia were well-developed and exhibited strong AchE reactivity, as well as aminergic and FMRFamide-like immunoreactivity. Numerous immunoreactive nerve cell bodies were observed around the inner surface of the ventral sucker. Fine FMRFamide-like peptides immunopositive nerve fiber was rarely observed. Overall, the organization of the nervous system of O. viverrini is similar to other trematodes.

Virulence of Burkholderia pseudomallei does not correlate with biofilm formation.

Burkholderia pseudomallei is the causative agent of melioidosis but currently the pathogenesis of the disease is still poorly understood. One of the virulent factors of gram-negative bacteria is the ability to produce biofilm to evade host defense. As B. pseudomallei has also been reported to develop the biofilm [1], in the present study, we therefore, quantified the biofilm formation in 50 strains of B. pseudomallei and compared with 50 strains of its avirulent counterpart Burkholderia thailandensis using a modified microtiter-plate test. The results showed that the quantity of biofilm produced by B. pseudomallei was statistically higher (P< 0.01) than that of B. thailandensis (means and SEs of the corrected OD630 were 2.17+/-0.29 and 0.59+/-0.05, respectively). Transmission electron micrographs of the B. pseudomallei strain with high biofilm formation exhibited microcolonies of bacterial cells surrounded by dense extracellular slime matrix comparing with only trace quantity in the low biofilm-producing strain or the biofilm mutants generated by Tn5-OT182 mutagenesis. However, no correlation could be observed between the biofilm formation and virulence, judging from the LD50 values in BALB/c mice. The data obtained with these naturally occurring Burkholderia species and the biofilm mutants are incompatible with the possibility that the biofilm plays a role in the pathogenesis of B. pseudomallei infection.