Are giardiasis-related pathologies caused only by certain Giardia duodenalis assemblages: Molecular epidemiology and assemblage typing of giardiasis infections along the southern shoreline of Lake Malawi
Of the eight morphologically identical but genetically distinct G. duodenalis assemblages A-H, almost all human infections are caused by assemblages A and B. Interestingly, recent evidence suggests there may be marked differences in the types of and degree of pathology experienced by those infected with either G. duodenalis assemblages A and B, as well as between those burdened with single-assemblage (A or B) or mixed-assemblage (A and B) infections. We investigated this using stool samples provided by school-aged children situated along the southern shoreline of Lake Malawi, Malawi.