Comparative neuropathology of <i>Balamuthia mandrillaris</i> infection across species
Balamuthia mandrillaris is a free-living amoeba that causes granulomatous amoebic encephalitis, a rare but frequently fatal infection of the central nervous system.In contrast to primary amoebic meningoencephalitis caused by Naegleria fowleri, B. mandrillaris infection is typically subacute to chronic and is commonly associated with haematogenous dissemination from extracranial sites.Here, we present a comparative analysis of the neuropathology of B. mandrillaris infection in humans and animals, highlighting conserved features of angiocentric invasion, granulomatous inflammation, necrotising vasculitis, and multifocal parenchymal injury.Across species, both trophozoites and cysts are consistently identified within affected tissue, reflecting sustained tissue persistence rather than explosive proliferation.Despite differences in disease kinetics and host immunity, the pathological https://doi.org/10.
Authors
- David Lloyd (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5656-0571)
- Ruqaiyyah Siddiqui (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9646-6208)
- Sutherland K Maciver
- Naveed Ahmed Khan
Institutions
- University of Derby (GB)
- Heriot-Watt University (GB)
- Istinye University (TR)
- Derby College (GB)
- The Queen's Medical Research Institute (GB)
- Cardiff University (GB)
- University of Edinburgh (GB)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Parasitology
- Published
- 2026-04-27
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1017/s0031182026102091
- Primary Topic
- Parasite Biology and Host Interactions
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- University of Cambridge
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research