Patients with PAM are mostly infected through various amoeba-contaminated freshwater sources, such as bathing in ponds and hot springs, diving and skiing in rivers, and drinking tap water (Chen et al., 2019; Izumiyama et al., 2003; Maclean et al., 2004; Marciano-Cabral, 1988). The disinfection or decontamination of freshwater contaminated with N. fowleri is still in its nascent stage. Additionally, PAM is difficult to diagnose, and no existing treatment has achieved satisfactory results (Kim et al., 2008; Visvesvara et al., 2007). In addition, the incidence of AK among patients who wear contact lenses has been increasing worldwide (Lorenzo-Morales et al., 2015). Acanthamoeba spp. infiltrate the corneal stroma and epithelial cells, which is followed by the progressive infiltration of inflammatory cells. Therefore, the removal of pathogenic N. fowleri and A. polyphaga from fresh and polluted water is important.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) first approved the liquid form of ClO2 for use as a disinfectant and sanitizer at various sites, including animal farms, bottling plants, and food processing, handling, and storage plants, in 1967, under the authority of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (Benarde et al., 1967). In 1988, the US EPA approved ClO2 gas as a disinfectant for use on tools, clean rooms, environmental surfaces, manufacturing, and laboratory equipment and in 2006, they published a re-registration eligibility decision regarding ClO2 as a pesticide (EPAGuidanceManual, 2006). ClO2 is rapidly decomposed to the byproducts chlorite (ClO2-) and chlorate (ClO3-) upon contact with naturally occurring organic and inorganic substances. Evaluation of these byproducts are reported to have acceptable daily intake (ADI) values of 0.03 mg/kg body weight (bw) per day for chlorite and 0.01 mg/kg bw per day for chlorate (JEFCA, 2007; 2008). Clinical research has shown that ClO2 is an effective disinfectant and cytotoxic to bacteria, fungi, and viruses (Kuo-Shan Yao, 2010; Sanekata et al., 2010; Wei et al., 2008). ClO2 gas is several times more potent than sodium hypochlorite and has been shown to be effective in various situations.
Sifaoui et al. (Sifaoui et al., 2021) reported the effects of a commercial disinfectant (CLORICAN) on Acanthamoeba spp. and N. fowleri viability. They reported that CLORICAN, a commercial liquid form of chlorine dioxide used to disinfect swimming pools, had a stronger effect on N. fowleri than Acanthamoeba spp. (Sifaoui et al., 2021). In this study, the growth rate of N. fowleri trophozoites decreased remarkably after 24 h of exposure to ClO2 gas, showing an approximately 80% reduction compared to the control group. In addition, the growth rate of A. polyphaga trophozoites decreased after 24 h of exposure to ClO2. In both cases, recovery of amoebae treated with ClO2 gas was not possible. The cell membrane is an important structure in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, and disruption of the nuclear and cytoplasmic membrane layers and cytoplasmic organelle degradation were observed by TEM analysis in both N. fowleri and A. polyphaga exposed to ClO2 gas. These findings reveal its efficacy as a disinfectant, similar to the effects observed in bacteria, fungi, and viruses (Kuo-Shan Yao, 2010; Sanekata et al., 2010; Wei et al., 2008). In our study, ClO2 gas was shown to have high sensitivity on both N. fowleri and A. polyphaga. ClO2 gas alters the amoeboid shape and induces cell shrinkage.
Additionally, we investigated actin gene expression in N. fowleri and A. polyphaga exposed to ClO2 gas. The actin gene is a major component of the cytoskeleton of pathogenic free-living amoebae such as N. fowleri and A. polyphaga (Sohn et al., 2019). Overexpression of the actin genes in N. fowleri or A. polyphaga trophozoites increases their amoebic motility and phagocytosis (Sohn et al., 2010). Therefore, we analyzed the expression levels of actin mRNA using RT-PCR to confirm the physiological changes in N. fowleri and A. polyphaga treated with ClO2 gas. In both cases, the levels of actin mRNA in N. fowleri and A. polyphaga exposed to ClO2 gas decreased in a time-dependent manner. Specifically, no actin mRNA expression was observed in N. fowleri exposed to ClO2 gas for 48 h, indicating that ClO2 gas completely eliminated N. fowleri trophozoites. These results suggest that ClO2 gas exerts amoebicidal effects on N. fowleri and A. polyphaga by reducing their motility and phagocytic activity. However, further studies are required to elucidate this mechanism. Therefore, ClO2 gas has been proposed as an efficient agent for the prevention and control of pathogenic free-living amoebae such as N. fowleri and A. polyphaga.