Introduction: Trichomoniasis remains one of the most significant sexually
transmitted disease (STDs) for public health. The disease is caused by parasitic
protozoa, Trichomonas vaginalis (T. vaginalis), which is often underestimated in
tropical medicine. Despite its public health importance, the epidemiology and
molecular characteristics of trichomoniasis in Egypt remains poorly understood,
particularly in the southern part of the country (Upper Egypt). This study targeted
exploring the genetic variability of T. vaginalis infections in Egyptian women
living in Upper Egypt using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP).
Patient and techniques: This cross-sectional study included 150 female patients,
who visited the gynaecology and obstetrics outpatient clinics at Sohag General
Hospital between 2019 and 2022, exhibiting symptoms of trichomoniasis.
Vaginal washout samples were collected from each patient and analyzed using
three diagnostic techniques: direct wet mount microscopy, culture on TYM
Diamond’s medium, and PCR amplification and Polymerase Chain Reaction-
Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) targeting the actin
gene, which was applied to all 16 samples that tested positive in culture. The
PCR-RFLP results were then visualized through agarose gels electrophoresis to
detect DNA fragments.
Results: Out of 150 vaginal washout samples, 12 cases (8%) tested positive for
T. vaginalis trophozoites via direct wet mount microscopy, while 16 samples
(10.6%) were positive in culture. Additionally, PCR-RFLP analysis of the 16
culture-positive samples revealed that 13 samples were confirmed positive
using this molecular method. The amplified products were digested with the
restriction enzyme Hind II, yielding three DNA fragments of 60, 213, and 827 bp,
which were then detected by agarose gel electrophoresis. Digestion with RsaIproduced five fragments measuring 87, 103/106, 236, and 568 bp, while MseI digestion resulted in three distinct fragments of 204, 315, and 581 bp.
Conclusion: This study provides robust baseline data on the prevalence and microscopic characteristics of T. vaginalis in Upper Egypt, while also presenting, for the first time, molecular detection and genotyping and revealed that genotype E is the only prevalent genotype in the region.