Translating From Egg- to Antigen-Based Indicators for Elimination Targets: A Bayesian Latent Class Analysis Study.

Schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease affecting over 240-million people. World Health Organization (WHO) targets for Schistosoma mansoni elimination are based on Kato-Katz egg counts, without translation to the widely used, urine-based, point-of-care circulating cathodic antigen diagnostic (POC-CCA). We aimed to standardize POC-CCA score interpretation and translate them to Kato-Katz-based standards, broadening diagnostic utility in progress towards elimination.

ABO Blood Groups Do Not Predict Infection Profiles in Highly Endemic Villages of Uganda.

is a parasite which causes significant public-health issues, with over 240 million people infected globally. In Uganda alone, approximately 11.6 million people are affected.

Reconciling Egg- and Antigen-Based Estimates of Schistosoma mansoni Clearance and Reinfection: A Modeling Study.

Background: Despite decades of interventions, 240 million people have schistosomiasis. Infections cannot be directly observed, and egg-based Kato-Katz thick smears lack sensitivity, affected treatment efficacy and reinfection rate estimates. The point-of-care circulating cathodic antigen (referred to from here as POC-CCA+) test is advocated as an improvement on the Kato-Katz method, but improved estimates are limited by ambiguities in the interpretation of trace results.

Smartphone-based DNA malaria diagnostics using deep learning for local decision support and blockchain technology for security.

In infectious disease diagnosis, results need to be rapidly communicated to doctors once testing has been completed, in order for care pathways to be implemented. This is a challenge when testing in remote low-resource rural communities, in which such diseases often create the largest burden. Here we report a smartphone-based end-to-end platform for multiplexed DNA malaria diagnosis.

Harnessing technology and portability to conduct molecular epidemiology of endemic pathogens in resource-limited settings.

Improvements in genetic and genomic technology have enabled field-deployable molecular laboratories and these have been deployed in a variety of epidemics that capture headlines. In this editorial, we highlight the importance of building physical and personnel capacity in low and middle income countries to deploy these technologies to improve diagnostics, understand transmission dynamics and provide feedback to endemic communities on actionable timelines. We describe our experiences with molecular field research on schistosomiasis, trypanosomiasis and rabies and urge the wider tropical medicine community to embrace these methods and help build capacity to benefit communities affected by endemic infectious diseases.