ArticleInfection and immunity2011
A metronidazole-resistant isolate of Blastocystis spp. is susceptible to nitric oxide and downregulates intestinal epithelial inducible nitric oxide synthase by a novel parasite survival mechanism.
Article in Infection and immunity, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
31 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 49 citations in OpenAlex.
- A Systematic Review about the Efficacy of Antiparasitic Agents in the Treatment of Blastocystis Species.Acta parasitologica · 2025Pooled it
- Evaluating the effects of metronidazole, metformin, and onion extract on GAPDH activity and nitric oxide production in Blastocystis sp. cultures: a biochemical and therapeutic approach.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2026Article
- Commensal, pathogen, or passenger? Rethinking the role ofOne health (Amsterdam, Netherlands) · 2025Review
- Assessment of the Therapeutic Role of Allium tuncelianum Extract in Rats Infected with Blastocystis Subtype 3.Acta parasitologica · 2025Article
- The Role ofPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Assessment of Lactobacillus acidophilus (L. acidophilus) therapeutic and prophylactic role in rats experimentally infected with Blastocystis subtype 3 (ST3).Parasitology research · 2025Article
- An Update onMicroorganisms · 2024Review
- Review
- Intestinal immune responses to commensal and pathogenic protozoa.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Review
- The synthesis of extracellular vesicles by the protistan parasiteFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2022Article
- Metabolic Fluctuations in the Human Stool Obtained fromMetabolites · 2021Article
- Blastocystis and Clostridioides difficile: Evidence for a Synergistic Role in Colonization Among IBD Patients with Emphasis on Ulcerative Colitis.The Turkish journal of gastroenterology : the official journal of Turkish Society of Gastroenterology · 2021Article
- New insights into the interactions between Blastocystis, the gut microbiota, and host immunity.PLoS pathogens · 2021Review
- Blastocystis in Swiss children: a practical approach.European journal of pediatrics · 2020Article
- Successful Genetic Transfection of the Colonic Protistan Parasite Blastocystis for Reliable Expression of Ectopic Genes.Scientific reports · 2019Article
- Effect of Blastocystis sp. in dengue patients-Increase in the treatment cost and exacerbation of symptoms.PloS one · 2019Article
- Membrane Surface Features ofGenes · 2018Article
- Viability Screen of LOPACAntimicrobial agents and chemotherapy · 2018Article
- Blastocystis: how do specific diets and human gut microbiota affect its development and pathogenicity?European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2017Review
- Blastocystis Isolate B Exhibits Multiple Modes of Resistance against Antimicrobial Peptide LL-37.Infection and immunity · 2016Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Blastocystis, one of the most common parasites colonizing the human intestine, is an extracellular, noninvasive, luminal protozoan with controversial pathogenesis. Blastocystis infections can be asymptomatic or cause intestinal symptoms of vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. Although chronic infections are frequently reported, Blastocystis infections have also been reported to be self-limiting in immunocompetent patients. Characterizing the host innate response to Blastocystis would lead to a better understanding of the parasite's pathogenesis. Intestinal epithelial cells produce nitric oxide (NO), primarily on the apical side, in order to target luminal pathogens. In this study, we show that NO production by intestinal cells may be a host defense mechanism against Blastocystis. Two clinically relevant isolates of Blastocystis, ST-7 (B) and ST-4 (WR-1), were found to be susceptible to a range of NO donors. ST-7 (B), a metronidazole-resistant isolate, was found to be more sensitive to nitrosative stress. Using the Caco-2 model of human intestinal epithelium, Blastocystis ST-7 (B) but not ST-4 (WR-1) exhibited dose-dependent inhibition of Caco-2 NO production, and this was associated with downregulation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). Despite its higher susceptibility to NO, Blastocystis ST-7 (B) may have evolved unique strategies to evade this potential host defense by depressing host NO production. This is the first study to highlight a strain-to-strain variation in the ability of Blastocystis to evade the host antiparasitic NO response.
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