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Book Review
Cryptosporidium:
from Molecules to Disease
R.C. Andrew Thomson, Anthony Armson, and Una M. Ryan, editors
Elsevier, Amsterdam; ISBN: 444-51351-5; Pages: 422, Price US $139.00
Suggested
citation for this article
The protozoan parasite, Cryptosporidium, has recently emerged
as a human pathogen. It was unidentified or unrecognized as a cause of
illness in humans until 1976. Since then, it has caused gastrointestinal
illness around the world. Its small size, low infectious dose, resistance
to chlorination, and durability in the environment has made it a uniquely
challenging organism for environmental scientists and public health professionals.
This book includes full text of abstracts and invited papers from an
international conference held in Australia in October 2001. More than
100 scientists from more than 15 countries contributed to the conference.
The "from molecules" aspect of the book, which addresses molecular
and biochemical features of the life cycle, infection, and detection of
Cryptosporidium, gives a complete picture with detailed papers
and abstracts of subjects, including pathogenesis and immune response,
cell culture methods, detection methods, and molecular taxonomy. The main
focus of the book is on descriptions and evaluations of traditional and
novel methods to detect and differentiate Cryptosporidium. Papers
are also included that describe methods of detecting Cryptosporidium
in environmental water samples, detail surveys that determine the occurrence
of Cryptosporidium in water supplies, and explain how to acquire
laboratory accreditation for testing water samples.
The book focuses less on understanding the public health aspects of Cryptosporidium,
its epidemiology, and treatment for the illness it causes. Notably absent
are descriptions of serologic assays used for detecting Cryptosporidium
in surveillance and epidemiologic studies. Recent studies have identified
a high seroprevalence in the general population, which indicates that
infection may be widespread (1–5). Including examples
of quantitative microbial risk assessments would have been useful (6).
These assessments are logical extensions of the valuable human infectivity
studies described in several papers in the book. The treatment portion
presents interesting results of randomized trials of nitroaxanide therapy
but is otherwise limited.
The organization and grouping of the papers and abstracts were confusing.
An introduction and summary for each section to help the reader identify
and assimilate the information in an organized manner would have been
helpful.
Despite these shortcomings, this book assembles and summarizes an impressive
array of recent advances in Cryptosporidium research. I recommend
this book for laboratory scientists, microbiologists, laboratory technicians,
and water-quality professionals. Medical professionals involved with research
to detect and differentiate Cryptosporidium will likely find this
book useful. Because of the technical nature of the papers and the emphasis
on microbiologic methods, the book will be less useful for public health
professionals, risk managers, and epidemiologists. Because of the rapid
progress of Cryptosporidium research, I recommend using this book
as one reference but also conducting a broad search of current literature
for new studies or additional advances.
Timothy J. Wade*
*U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
References
- Leach CT, Koo FC, Kuhls TL, Hilsenbeck SG, Jenson
HB. Prevalence
of Cryptosporidium parvum infection in children along the Texas-Mexico
border and associated risk factors. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2000;62:656–61.
- Eisenberg JN, Priest JW, Lammie PJ, Colford JM Jr. The
serologic response to Cryptosporidium in HIV-infected persons:
implications for epidemiologic research. Emerg Infect Dis. 2001;7:1004–9.
- Frost FJ, Muller TB, Craun GF, Lockwood WB, Calderon RL. Serological
evidence of endemic waterborne Cryptosporidium infections.
Ann Epidemiol. 2002;12:222–7.
- Frost FJ, Kunde TR, Muller TB, Craun GF, Katz LM, Hibbard AJ, et al.
Serological
responses to Cryptosporidium antigens among users of surface-
vs. ground-water sources. Epidemiol Infect. 2003;131:1131–8.
- Steinberg EB, Mendoza CE, Glass R, Arana B, Lopez MB, Mejia M, et
al. Prevalence
of infection with waterborne pathogens: a seroepidemiologic study in
children 6–36 months old in San Juan Sacatepequez, Guatemala. Am
J Trop Med Hyg. 2004;70:83–8.
- Haas CN. Epidemiology,
microbiology, and risk assessment of waterborne pathogens including
Cryptosporidium. J Food Prot. 2000;63:827–31.
Suggested citation
for this article:
Wade TJ. Cryptosporidium:
from molecules to disease [book review]. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the
Internet]. 2004 Sep [date cited]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol10no9/04-0566.htm
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