Isolation and Identification of Acanthamoeba from Tonekabon Rivers Regional, Mazandaran

Acanthamoeba species are abundant in soil and water samples and isolated from eye wash equipment sectors in medical laboratory. This single cell is as a cause of opportunistic infections, especially in patients with AIDS and organ recipients. The aim of this study was to isolate and identify the Acanthamoeba spp. from Tonekabon Rivers.
This study was a descriptive study. 100 samples were collected from the river in the Tonekabon city and were cultured on nutrient agar medium. Then Acanthamoeba to evaluate and identify common species identified using morphological and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests.
23 samples (23%) of the Acanthamoeba were identified morphologically and also using specific primers to amplify a 500 bp 18SrRNA. After sequencing, it was found that genotypes of Acanthamoeba, belongs to a new species, Acanthamoeba palestinensis.
The results show that A. palestinensis is one of the Amoebic keratitis risk factors in Tonekabon rivers. Health planners must take note and make people aware of the risk of contamination.