Phylogenetic Analysis of Trichomonas Vaginalis using ITS1/5.8S/ITS2 Gene in Women Referred to Diagnostic Treatment Centers in Karaj, Iran

Introduction: Trichomonas Vaginalis is the most common nonviral sexually transmitted infection in the world. Moreover, it is an important source of reproductive complications and increased risk of HIV transmission, Therefore, it is considered a public health issue. This study aimed to determine the molecular and phylogenetic characteristics of Trichomonas Vaginalis among women in Alborz Province, Iran. Materials & Methods: In this study, 50 positive samples of Trichomonas Vaginalis were collected from vaginal discharge, and after isolating the parasite using the culture medium and extracting DNA, the PCR was performed on the ITS1/5.8S/ITS2 gene. Out of the isolated positive cases, 10 samples were sent for sequencing. Ethics code: 52/2062 Findings: All 50 samples were positive using the wet spread method, culture medium, and PCR. Based on the observed results, the size of the proliferative product of this gene was 372 base pairs. The results of this study were analyzed using phylogenetic tree and neighbor-joining. Furthermore, the possible mutations were investigated in this study. Discussions & Conclusions: The results of this study showed that the ITS1/5.8S/ITS2 gene isolated from these samples was more than 99% similar to the sequences in the gene bank. The sequence of the 5/8SrRNA gene and its surrounding areas of ITS1 and ITS2 showed the low polymorphism of this gene.