The epidemiology of Entamoeba histolytica in a rural and an urban area of Mexico. A pilot survey II.

Stocks of intestinal amoebae grown in monoxenic culture, were compared against each other and against those previously reported from Mexico City. These were isolated from subjects in San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas (rural area) and hospital patients in Merida, Yucatan (urban area). Electrophoretic patterns of the four enzymes: glucose phosphate isomerase (GPI), phosphoglucomutase (PGM), L-malate: NADP+ oxido-reductase (oxalacetate-decarboxylating) (ME) and hexokinase (HK) demonstrated the presence of five groups (zymodemes) of Entamoeba histolytica already described from Mexico City, together with two new zymodemes, one of which gave a recognizable pathogenic pattern, whilst the other gave a contradictory pattern. Zymodemes of Entamoeba coli, Entamoeba hartmanni, Iodamoeba buetschlii and Dientamoeba fragilis, previously described were also isolated. One new zymodeme of D. fragilis was demonstrated.