Molecular and microscopic prevalence of intestinal microsporidia among HIV+/AIDS patients in the Alborz province, Iran

Background Microsporidia are a large family of obligate intracellular protozoa; these medically important species are recognized as opportunistic agents in intestinal complications in HIV+/AIDS patients. Methods The current cross-sectional study was designed and conducted from October 2018 to June 2019 to determine intestinal microsporidia in HIV+/AIDS patients by trichrome/Zeihl-Neelsen staining and SYBR Green-based real-time PCR. Results Out of 80 HIV+/AIDS patients, 23.75% (n=19) and 12.5% (n=10) were identified by molecular and microscopic methods, respectively. The predominant species in patients was Encephalitozoon (94%), which was found by quantitative real-time PCR and its high resolution melting tool. Conclusion As far as we know, this is the first report from the Alborz region. The prevalence of intestinal microsporidiosis in this area in HIV+/AIDS patients was higher than both the global and national average. In addition to the need for further studies to prove protozoan pathogenicity in the aforementioned group, preventive measures should be considered.