Diagnostic urinary cfDNA detected in human cystic echinococcosis.

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a major neglected tropical zoonotic disease caused by the tissue-dwelling larval stage of the cestode parasite Echinococcus granulosus. For individuals suspected of CE, the diagnostic standard is imaging using ultrasonography, X rays, or computed tomography. These resource-demanding and expensive procedures are rarely available in endemic rural areas where CE is most prevalent.

Transrenal DNA-based diagnosis of Strongyloides stercoralis (Grassi, 1879) infection: Bayesian latent class modeling of test accuracy.

For epidemiological work with soil transmitted helminths the recommended diagnostic approaches are to examine fecal samples for microscopic evidence of the parasite. In addition to several logistical and processing issues, traditional diagnostic approaches have been shown to lack the sensitivity required to reliably identify patients harboring low-level infections such as those associated with effective mass drug intervention programs. In this context, there is a need to rethink the approaches used for helminth diagnostics.

Point of care diagnosis of multiple schistosome parasites: Species-specific DNA detection in urine by loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP).

Schistosomes are easily transmitted and high chance of repeat infection, so if control strategies based on targeted mass drug administration (MDA) are to succeed it is essential to have a test that is sensitive, accurate and simple to use. It is known and regularly demonstrated that praziquantel does not always eliminate an infection so in spite of the successes of control programs a residual of the reservoir survives to re-infect snails. The issue of diagnostic sensitivity becomes more critical in the assessment of program effectiveness.

Malaria vector control at a crossroads: public health entomology and the drive to elimination.

Vector control has been at the core of successful malaria control. However, a dearth of field-oriented vector biologists threatens to undermine global reductions in malaria burden. Skilled cadres are needed to manage insecticide resistance, to maintain coverage with current interventions, to develop new paradigms for tackling 'residual' transmission and to target interventions as transmission becomes increasingly heterogeneous.

Remotely-sensed, nocturnal, dew point correlates with malaria transmission in Southern Province, Zambia: a time-series study.

Background: Plasmodium falciparum transmission has decreased significantly in Zambia in the last decade. The malaria transmission is influenced by environmental variables. Incorporation of environmental variables in models of malaria transmission likely improves model fit and predicts probable trends in malaria disease.

Detection of parasite-specific DNA in urine sediment obtained by filtration differentiates between single and mixed infections of Schistosoma mansoni and S. haematobium from endemic areas in Ghana.

Differential diagnosis of Schistosoma mansoni and S. haematobium, which often occur sympatrically in Africa, requires both urine and stool and the procedures are low in sensitivity. The standard diagnostic tests, such as Kato-Katz (KK) for S.

Evaluating local vegetation cover as a risk factor for malaria transmission: a new analytical approach using ImageJ.

Background: In places where malaria transmission is unstable or is transmitted under hypoendemic conditions, there are periods where limited foci of cases still occur and people become infected. These residual "hot spots" are likely reservoirs of the parasite population and so are fundamental to the seasonal spread and decline of malaria. It is, therefore, important to understand the ecological conditions that permit vector mosquitoes to survive and forage in these specific areas.

Diagnosis of Schistosoma mansoni without the stool: comparison of three diagnostic tests to detect Schistosoma [corrected] mansoni infection from filtered urine in Zambia.

Diagnosis for intestinal Schistosoma mansoni lacks sensitivity and is arduous to conduct. The standard diagnostic tests, Kato-Katz (KK) and circulating cathodic antigen (CCA) both lack sensitivity and with KK, require obtaining, transporting, and examining fresh stool. We compared diagnostic efficacy of KK, CCA, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect S.

Measuring malaria by passive case detection: a new perspective based on Zambian experience.

Most measurements of malaria are based on cross-sectional data and do not reflect the dynamic nature of transmission, particularly when interventions require timely data for planning strategies. Such data can be collected from local rural health centres (RHCs) where the infrastructure is sufficiently developed and where rapid diagnostics are in use. Because in rural areas, the population served by RHC is reasonably static, the regular use of malaria rapid diagnosis in RHCs can provide data to assess local weekly incidence rates, and such data are easily dispersed by cell phones.

Malaria antifolate resistance with contrasting Plasmodium falciparum dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) polymorphisms in humans and Anopheles mosquitoes.

Surveillance for drug-resistant parasites in human blood is a major effort in malaria control. Here we report contrasting antifolate resistance polymorphisms in Plasmodium falciparum when parasites in human blood were compared with parasites in Anopheles vector mosquitoes from sleeping huts in rural Zambia. DNA encoding P.

Clinical utility of squamous and transitional nuclear structure alterations induced by Schistosoma haematobium in chronically infected adults with bladder damage verified by ultrasound in Ghana.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical utility of quantitative nuclear morphometry--i.e., alteration in nuclear size/shape, DNA content and chromatin structure-of intact cells obtained from the sediment of urine specimens collected from people living in an area highly endemic for Schistosoma haematobium in Ghana.

PCR detection of Plasmodium falciparum in human urine and saliva samples.

Background: Current detection or screening for malaria infection necessitates drawing blood by fingerprick or venipuncture, which poses risks and limitations for repeated measurement. This study presents PCR detection of Plasmodium falciparum in human urine and saliva samples, and illustrates this potential application in genotyping malaria infections.

Methods: Urine and saliva were obtained from 47 thick film positive and 4 negative individuals one day after collection of blood slides and filter paper blood spots.

Urinary schistosomiasis in Zimbabwean school children: predictors of morbidity.

Background: The morbid effects of urinary bilharziasis are becoming more evident with the advent of sophisticated diagnostics such as ultrasound. However, such diagnosis of Schistosoma haematobium morbidity is often hampered by lack of funds, proper equipment, or training.

Objective: We performed a cross-sectional investigation of schoolchildren in a highly endemic area of east central Zimbabwe in order to assess the utility of a number of simple clinical indicators to predict Schistosoma haematobium morbidity.

Urinary tract pathology attributed to Schistosoma haematobium: does parasite genetics play a role?

Disease outcome in persons infected with Schistosoma haematobium varies dramatically, ranging from mild symptoms to severe damage of the kidneys and/or bladder. We used ultrasonography to characterize the extent of urinary tract pathology of infected children in Zimbabwe, and random genetic markers to examine the relationship between genetic diversity of S. haematobium and clinical outcome.

Epidemiological assessment of Schistosoma haematobium-induced kidney and bladder pathology in rural Zimbabwe.

Clinical outcome of Schistosoma haematobium infection may vary significantly, ranging from mild symptoms to severe damage of urinary tract organs. This present study was undertaken to assess the relationship of a number of epidemiological and parasitological parameters with disease outcome in children from rural Zimbabwe. We surveyed 551 primary school students from three schools in the Chikwaka Communal Lands for schistosomiasis; 59.