RE:  Article on Giardia in Domestic Ferrets - Clarification

In yesterday's FML, Sukie posted a very interesting article on
Giardiasis in a domestic "pet shop" ferret: Zoonotic genotype of
Giardia intestinalis detected in a ferret. Abe N, et al.
J Parasitol. 2005 Feb ;91(1):179-82.

Giardia (also known as Giardia lamblia, Lamblia intestinalis or Giardia
intestinalis or duodenalis) is a protozoan parasite that colonizes and
reproduces in the small intestine of host mammals. It is found through
out the world. Giardia not only affects humans, but also many other
mammals. It is one of the most common parasites infecting cats and
dogs. Infection in kennel-raised puppies can be as high as 30% in the
first year of life. Infection has also been reported in cattle, sheep,
beavers, and deer.

Animals and humans become infected by eating or drinking contaminated
water or food. The infection is known as "Giardiasis". Signs and
symptoms of Giardiasis include diarrhea, tiredness, excessive gas,
nausea and vomiting, greasy foul-smelling stools (steatorrhea),
epigastric pain, and bloating. Although infection in healthy humans
can be self-limiting, antibiotic treatment, such as Metronidazole, is
recommended.

The article from Japanese researchers reports on the:

"zoonotic the isolation of Giardia in a ferret exhibited at a pet shop.
The isolate was analyzed genetically to validate the possibility of
zoonotic transmission. Giardia diagnostic fragments of the small
subunit ribosomal RNA, beta-giardin, and glutamate dehydrogenase genes
were amplified from the ferret isolate and sequenced to reveal the
phylogenetic relationships between it and other Giardia species or
genotypes of G. intestinalis reported previously. The results showed
that the ferret isolate represented the genetic group A-I in assemblage
A, which could be a causative agent of human giardiasis."


The following facts should be highlighted:

1) This Case Report is a laboratory genetics study that does NOT
document zoonotic transmission. The report merely concludes that a pet
shop ferret had a species of Giardia that its authors state "could be
a causative agent" of Giardia in humans. One should NOT conclude from
this report that the ferret actually became infected from a human.

2) If there were transmission, it was FROM a HUMAN TO a FERRET-not the
other way around.

It is important to understand what this article does and does not say
and what the data supports, so that no one arrives at a wrong
conclusion regarding ferrets.

Sincerely,
FAH

Freddie Ann Hoffman, MD
Washington, DC
Tel.:  202-545-6843/Fax:  202-545-6844

[Posted in FML 5800]