Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42397825›Full record

ArticleThe Indian journal of medical research2026

Molecular epidemiology of Acanthamoeba in human infections and environmental reservoirs in India.

Sumeeta Khurana, Shreya Singh, Shivani Rathor, Parveen Tanwar, Anitha P Moorkoth, Shameer V K, Pressy Sankar, Bindu V, Nitin Gupta, Kokila Banerjee and 6 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The Indian journal of medical research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

16 authors.

Sumeeta KhuranaDepartment of Medical Parasitology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
Shreya SinghDepartment of Medical Parasitology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
Shivani RathorDepartment of Medical Parasitology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
Parveen TanwarDepartment of Medical Parasitology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
Anitha P MoorkothDepartment of Microbiology, Government Medical College, Kozhikode, Kerala, India.
Shameer V KDepartment of Medicine, Government Medical College, Kozhikode, Kerala, India.
Pressy SankarDepartment of Microbiology, Government Medical College, Kozhikode, Kerala, India.
Bindu VDepartment of Community Medicine, Government Medical College, Kozhikode, Kerala, India.
Nitin GuptaDepartment of Infectious Diseases, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, India.
Kokila BanerjeeDepartment of Microbiology and Molecular Biology, Drs. Tribedi and Roy Diagnostic Laboratory, Taltala, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Subendu RoyDepartment of Microbiology and Molecular Biology, Drs. Tribedi and Roy Diagnostic Laboratory, Taltala, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Jyothi RajahamsanDepartment of Microbiology, Government Medical College, Idukki, Kerala, India.
Manjusree ShanmughamDepartment of Microbiology, Government Medical College, Konni, Pathanamthitta, Kerala, India.
Aravind ReghukumarDepartment of Infectious Disease, Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India.
Ragini TilakDepartment of Microbiology, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Nishant VermaDepartment of Microbiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background and objectives Acanthamoeba spp. are free-living amoebae causing rare but frequently fatal, granulomatous amoebic encephalitis (GAE). Understanding their genotypic distribution is essential for defining epidemiology and identifying environmental sources. This study investigated Acanthamoeba in clinically suspected cases of GAE and in environmental water sources across India. Methods A total of 125 clinical specimens from patients with suspected GAE [cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), brain biopsy tissue, or pus] and 14 environmental water samples (pond, well, and household water) were analyzed between April 2023 and August 2025. Microscopic examination of samples and culture on non-nutrient agar overlaid with Escherichia coli was done. Centrifuged water pellets were processed similarly. DNA extraction and polymerase chain reaction assay (PCR) targeting the Acanthamoeba spp. diagnostic fragment were performed, followed by sequencing for genotype identification. Results Eighteen (14.4%) clinical samples were Acanthamoeba-PCR positive, with seven yielding positive cultures. These included samples from Kerala (n=9), Karnataka (n=4), Himachal Pradesh (n=2), and one each from Delhi, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh. Seven (50%) water samples were Acanthamoeba-PCR positive (Kerala, n=4, and West Bengal, n=3), of which two were culture-positive. Genotyping of 12 clinical and four environmental samples revealed that all isolates belonged to genotype T4, except for one T3 CSF-derived isolate from Karnataka. Interpretation and conclusions The predominance of Acanthamoeba genotype T4 across clinical and environmental samples mirrors global trends and suggests enhanced pathogenic potential and ecological adaptability of this genotype. The detection of environmental genotypes underscores the importance of systematic environmental surveillance in elucidating transmission pathways more effectively.

Indexed as

AcanthamoebaAmebiasisGenotypeHumansIndiaMaleMolecular EpidemiologyPolymerase Chain ReactionAcanthamoebaEncephalitisEnvironmental surveillanceFree-living amoebaeGenotypingMolecular diagnosis

Identifiers

PMID42397825
PMCPMC13363078

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-SA
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.