RAPD (RANDOM AMPLIFIED POLYMORPHIC DNA) ANALYSIS OF GIARDIA DNA AND CORRELATION WITH ISOENZYME DATA

Fourteen Giardia duodenalis isolates were examined using the RAPD (ran dom amplified polymorphic deoxyribonucleic acid) technique. Simple rep roducible Polymorphisms were generated using 3 different RAPD primers. The results generated by each primer were very similar and were signi ficantly correlated with each other. These data were then compared to existing isoenzyme electrophoresis data on the same isolates. The RAPD data divided the isolates into 10 groupings or rapdemes while the iso enzyme data divided them into 10 similar zymodemes. Both methods group ed 4 isolates (BAH42, BAH44c9, BAH12c9 and BAH39c7), which comprised a phenotypically heterogeneous assemblage with respect to growth rate a nd metabolism, into similar groupings. The 2 methods were significantl y correlated (P<0.001). It will therefore be possible to use RAPD for the characterization of isolates of Giardia, and other parasites such as Cryptosporidium, which are refractory to cultivation in vitro.