Ascel Samba-Louaka

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1. Introduction Protists of the Amoebozoa clade include several human pathogens, such as Entamoeba histolytica and Acanthamoeba castellanii, which significantly impact human health. They grow and reproduce in an “active” form called a trophozoite. When subjected to stressful conditions, such as nutrient deprivation, they can efficiently protect themselves by forming cysts in a mechanism called encystation [,]. Cysts are characterized by cellular quiescence.

2. Materials and Methods 2.1. Study Sites, Water and Biofilm Sampling Water samples and biofilm swabs were collected from various locations, including the dental faculty in Abu Dis/East Jerusalem (31°75′ N, 35°25′ E), the dental faculty in Jenin (32°23′ N, 35°19′ E), as well as dentists’ clinics in different regions within the West Bank (WB), such as Nablus (32°22′ N, 32°13′ E), Tulkarem (32°31′ N, 32°18′ E), and Hebron (31°52′ N, 31°31′ E). (Figure S1).