ABSTRACT
Entamoeba histolytica is an invasive intestinal pathogenic protozoa. It is a parasite of humans, but may also infect animals such as primates, cats, dogs and some rodents. Detection of Entamoeba histolyticain archaeological samples is also based upon the recovery of parasite markers. The first remains of Entamoeba sp from archaeological samples were described by Witenberg in 1961. The Entamoeba histolytica II test from TechLab has been developed to enable hospital microbiology labs to accurately detect Entamoeba histolytica, with good sensitivity and specificity. The test offers clear differentiation between E. histolytica and E. dispar or E. moshkovskii. The use of advanced biomolecular techniques such as ELISA allows a diagnosis down to species level, a degree of resolution that is rarely possible for amoebic parasites using microscopy and current morphometric data banks. Data collected on Entamoeba histolytica suggests an Old World origin for the current strain of the parasite, with a possible diffusion to the Americas around a thousand years ago.
