Giardia duodenalis Identification

Identification of Giardia duodenalis (also known as Giardia lamblia or Giardia intestinalis) and discrimination of the two main assemblages infecting humans, Assemblage A & B.

Human stool sample

Human stool sample may be fresh or in transport media such as Cary-Blair. Samples in fixatives containing formalin, such as SAF are not accepted.

Samples contained in a leak-proof container with sample number on the tube and any identifying patient information removed. Preferred minimum sample size is 1 gram. Samples may be frozen on dry ice or refrigerated on wet ice. Repeated freeze-thaws should be avoided if possible.

Shipping of specimens shall be done by a TDG certified individual in accordance with TDG regulations. For additional information regarding classification of specimens for the purposes of shipping, consult either Part 2 Appendix 3 of the TDG Regulations or section 3.6.2 of the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations as applicable.

Nausea, chills, low grade fever, epigastric pain and sudden onset of watery diarrhea.

Completed Parasite Genomics Unit requisition form.

Samples in fixatives containing formalin, such as SAF, are not accepted.

qPCR beta-giardin gene as per:

1. Reaction and cycling conditions - Elwin K, Fairclough HV, Hadfield SJ, Chalmers RM. Giardia duodenalis typing from stools: a comparison of three approaches to extracting DNA, and validation of a probe-based real-time PCR typing assay. J Med Microbiol. 2014 Jan;63(Pt 1):38-44. doi: 10.1099/jmm.0.066050-0.
2. Primers - Moore CE, Elwin K, Phot N, Seng C, Mao S, Suy K, Kumar V, Nader J, Bousfield R, Perera S, Bailey JW, Beeching NJ, Day NP, Parry CM, Chalmers RM. Molecular Characterization of Cryptosporidium Species and Giardia duodenalis from Symptomatic Cambodian Children. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2016 Jul 7;10(7):e0004822. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004822.

7 calendar days. Note: Turnaround times for routine isolates may be extended during outbreak activities or due to limited availability of resources.