Effect of exogenous adminstration of anti-oxidants on Blastocystis hominis in vivo

ABSTRACT

The effect of exogenous administration of antioxidant [Anttox] on the course of B. hominis in experimentally infected mice was studied. B. hominis isolates were obtained from 10 gastrointestinal symptomatic adult patients. Three groups of 30 infected mice [3/isolate] were used. GI was untreated infected, GII was treated by antox for 4 weeks after infection diagnosis [treatment strategy], and GIII antox treated by antox for 4 weeks before infection [prophylactic strategy]. Mild pathological changes were detected on 13.4%, 19.9% and 86.8% of mice in Gs I, II and III, respectively. Moderate pathological changes were found in 29.9%, 26.6% and 6.6% of mice in Gs I, II and III, respectively. While, the majority of severe pathological changes were in Gs I and II [56.7% and 53.5%] as compared to GIII [6.6%]. Meanwhile, 86.8% of mice in GIII had B. hominis forms >10/high power field compared to 3.3% in Gs I and II, respectively. Although 19.8% of mice in GII were positive for B. hominis by direct smear, no growth resulted in vitro and all the forms were non-viable by using neutral red stain. All the differences were statistically significant. So, antioxidant exacerbated B. hominis intensity but it decreased the pathological changes