Entamoeba

Entamoeba coli - Wikimedia Commons

• Mostly found in warmer climates

• Reproduces by binary fission

• Encysts and is passed out in the faeces

Pathogenesis

• Is the main cause of amoebic dysentery in man
  • Acts as a source of infection for dogs and cats

• Monkeys have their own strains of Entamoeba histolytica which are also infective for man

• Trophozoites secrete proteolytic enzymes which produces flask-shaped ulcers in the mucosa of the large intestine
  • Erosion of the large intestine may allow the parasite to enter the bloodstream which can cause abscesses in the liver

Diagnosis

• Detection of motile organisms and cysts in fresh faecal smears