Can anyone find me 20 or 30 Morgellons patients for study?

[brf]

Hi,

I work at a non-profit group that helps develop diagnostics and treatments for an infectious disease that has similarities to Morgellons.

I'd like to find 20 or 30 patients diagnosed with Morgellons disease who would be willing to participate in a study. Participants would need to fill out a questionnaire, and provide a stool (fecal) sample.

We would need the patients to be in Oregon to fall under our IRB protocol. It would be preferable if they were in driving distance to Tigard or Corvallis to drop off the specimen.

If the patients were in another state, that would be OK, but we would need a physician in that state who would be willing to get IRB approval for the study. It can usually be done through a local hospital at no cost, but it requires some time. The physician would also have to receive the stool samples and ship them to a lab. BRF will pay for the collection vials and shipping and lab analysis.

The interface to this message board will not allow me to post my e mail address in a standard format, but that is director at bhomcenter dot org. If you google Blastocystis Research, our web site is the first listed, and you can click on Contact.

I'll also check back on this message board in a few days.

Best Wishes,

Ken

---

Blastocystis Research Foundation
5060 SW Philomath Blvd, #202
Corvallis, OR 97333

"Germs are of no account in cholera."
- Max von Pettenkofer, Cholera Expert, 1884

[Kritters]

Welcome to the forum, Ken.........

You are doing a great service. Thank you. In your research on this infectious disease, have you identified any of the tick born illnesses such as Borrellia burgdorferi, Ehrlichia, Babesiosis etc.?

thanks,
Kritters

[jonsi]

Oregon is way too far away from New Mexico! Good luck.

My doctor is homeopathic/natural medicine doc and I am doing great.

[kmar]

Hi Ken,

I also posted your message at this site:

LymeBusters - Morgellons Study in Oregon

(I hope you don't mind)

Thank you for offering this study.

Since you were not able to post a link to your foundation, here it is:

Blastocystis Research Foundation

Email:
director@bhomcenter.org

[Sadsack]

I will copy & paste this to Morg Sanctum, birdmites, and Morg 23. Can someone do Finding 1 cure?

Thanks,

SS

[kmar]

I'll add it to finding1cure and the morgellons yahoo group too.

[Sadsack]

Blastocystis
Blastocystis

Blastocystis sp.

Scientific classificationDomain:Eukaryota
Kingdom:Chromalveolata
Phylum:Heterokontophyta
Class:Blastocystae
Order:Blastocystida
Family:Blastocystidae
Genus:Blastocystis
(Alexieff 1911) Brumpt 1912Blastocystis is a single-celled parasite of the phylum Heterokontophyta, comprising several species, living in humans and animals.
Blastocystis is a highly prevalent parasite that infects the gastrointestinal tract. Many different types of Blastocystis exist, and they can infect humans, farm animals, birds, rodents, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and even cockroaches [1].


Infection with Blastocystis can produce the disease Blastocystosis. The most frequently described symptoms of Blastocystosis are abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea.

Classification

The appropriate classification of Blastocystis has only recently been resolved. The original description of Blastocystis was as a yeast due to its yeast-like glistening appearance in fresh wet mounts and the absence of pseudopodia and locomotion. [2] This was then contradicted by Zierdt, who reclassified it under subphylum Sporozoa, based on some distinctive protistan features of the Blastocystis cell, such as the presence of nuclei, smooth and rough endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi complex, and mitochondrion-like organelles. Its sensitivity to antiprotozoal drugs and its inability to grow on fungal media further indicated that it was a protozoan.
However, major revisions were made to its classification. An analysis of gene sequences was performed in 1996, which placed it into the group Stramenopiles.[3] [4] Other Stramenopiles include brown algae, mildew, diatoms, the organism that caused the Irish potato famine, and the organism responsible for Sudden oak death disease. However, the position of Blastocystis within the stramenopiles remains enigmatic.[5]
[edit] Different species

For many years, scientists believed one species of Blastocystis infected humans, while different species of Blastocystis infected other animals. So they called Blastocystis from humans Blastocystis hominis and gave different species names to Blastocystis from other animals, for example Blastocystis ratti from rats. Various genetic analysis showed Blastocystis hominis as a unique entity does not really exist. There is no single species of Blastocystis that infects humans. [6] In fact, nine distinct species of Blastocystis (as defined by genetic differences) can infect humans, including those previously called Blastocystis ratti. [7] Because of this, in 2007 scientists proposed discontinuing the use of the term Blastocystis hominis. Their proposal is to refer to Blastocystis from humans and animals as Blastocystis sp. subtype nn where nn is a number from 1 to 9 assigned to each species group, according to the genetic identify of the Blastocystis organism, rather than the host that was infected by it. [8]
A tenth group was reported in China in 2007 [9], but a full analysis of its relationships has not yet been performed and it is not yet clear whether it is a group within a described subtype or a new subtype. A definite tenth subtype has been found in a variety of other mammals, including primates, but not yet in humans. [10]
[edit] Morphology

Blastocystis has various morphological forms.

Four commonly described forms are the vacuolar (otherwise known as central body), granular, amoeboid, and cyst forms. The appearance of the organism is largely dependent upon environmental conditions as it is extremely sensitive to oxygen. Whether all of these forms exist in the host intestine is unclear.

• Vacuolar form

The vacuolar form is the typical cell form of Blastocystis seen in culture and is often used for the identification of the organism. These vacuolar forms vary greatly in size, with diameters ranging between 2 µm and 200µm. The vacuolar form is otherwise known as central body form because it has a large central vacuole surrounded by a thin band of peripheral cytoplasm which contains other organelles. Flocculent material has been described as being scattered unevenly throughout the vacuole. The function of the vacuole is still unclear, however, it has been suggested that, like for many eukaryotic cells, it is for storage purposes. Other functions, such as cell division during reproduction and the deposition of apoptotic bodies, have been proposed, although more tests need to be done to validate these roles.

[Sadsack]

• Granular form

The granular form is somewhat morphologically similar to the vacuolar forms except that distinct granules are observed in the central vacuole and / or cytoplasm. Within the central vacuole, these granules appear in different forms too. Three types were suggested – metabolic, lipid, and reproductive granules. Metabolic granules play a role in chemical processes that are necessary for the maintenance of life in the organism. It was also put forward that reproductive granules were involved in the development of progeny cells. These hypotheses were made based on microscopy alone, which may be deemed misleading, hence more need to be done before making a definite conclusion. It has also been suggested that the granules may be an indication that the cell is dying!

• Amoeboid form

The other form that exists is the amoeboid form. The amoeboid form of Blastocystis is non-motile and strongly adhesive. A research study has reported that amoeboid forms are produced only in cultures taken from symptomatic individuals, with asymptomatic individuals producing exclusively vacuolar forms. The study suggested this method could be used for diagnosing symptomatic infection. Additionally, it suggested the symptoms could be due to the accumulation of the strongly adhesive amoeboid forms on the host's intestinal wall. A detailed ultra-structural study of amoeboid forms was published in 2007. [11]

• Cyst form

The Blastocystis cyst form is a more recent discovery and has helped in the advancement of understanding the way the infection is transmitted. As compared to the other forms, it is generally smaller in size and has a thick multilayered cyst wall. It lacks a central vacuole and few nuclei, multiple vacuoles and food storage deposits were observed. The cyst form is the most resistant form of this parasite and is able to survive in harsh conditions because of its thick multilayered cyst wall. Experiments have been carried out to show its ability to withstand acidic gastric juices. Besides, the cysts did not lyse when placed in distilled water and could survive well at room temperature for up to 19 days, indicating its strong resistance. [12][13] In another experiment, the cyst form was even able to survive in culture medium containing antiprotozoal drugs! This further supports the idea that the cyst form is the most resistant of the four forms.

Four common forms of Blastocystis hominis. Clockwise from top left: vacuolar, granular, amoeboid, and cyst forms.



Life cycle


The supposed life cycle begins with ingestion of the cyst form. After ingestion, the cyst develops into other forms which may in turn re-develop into cyst forms. Through human feces, the cyst forms enter the external environment and are transmitted to humans and other animals via the fecal-oral route, repeating the entire cycle.

Life cycle of Blastocystis proposed by Tan [14]



Obtaining and culturing Blastocystis
The ATCC maintains a collection of Blastocystis isolates. Some records show whether the isolates were obtained from symptomatic or asymptomatic carriers. As yet, no publication has identified the subtypes of most of the ATCC isolates, which are mostly axenic. Researchers have reported that patients with Irritable bowel syndrome may provide a reliable source for xenic Blastocystis isolates. Some researchers have reported being able to culture Blastocystis from 46% of IBS patients. [15] Researchers have described different culture mechanisms for growing Blastocystis. Colony growth on solid medium colonies on solid culture medium using a synthetic medium with added supplements have both been described. [16][17] However, most cultivation is performed in liquid media of various types.

Blastocystis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

SS

[Sadsack]

I really hope that people who can participate in this study are doing so. This is a rare opportunity.

btw - spend a little time on their website:

Blastocystis Research Foundation

From their website:

What We Do

BRF works with scientists in more than 11 countries to help stop the what has become the world's fastest growing pandemic protozoal disease. We focus our efforts in these areas:

Advocacy

We work to change policies and practices that keep people with chronic gastrointestinal illness sick and dependent on medical attention.


Clinically Relevant Research

We are part of a global movement to address gastrointestinal illness using scientific methods. We help researchers in different countries communicate with each other, and we conduct original research in the United States.

Diagnostics and Treatment

We work to make sure patients have access to reliable diagnostics and treatments for Blastocystis infection. We publish studies on the reliability of existing diagnostics and treatments, and work to develop ones that are more reliable.

Health Policy Research

We do the research that helps understand the best places to spend medical research dollars.

SS

[Kritters]

SS and Kmar,

Thank both of you for continuing with this thread. I agree that it's a great opportunity.

Kritts