Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0024530 (malaria)
 44,886 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Because of renewed interest in parasitic diseases, increasing numbers of persons in clinical and research laboratories have the potential for exposure to parasites and therefore are at risk for acquiring parasitic infections. In this review of laboratory-acquired parasitic infections, we concentrate on protozoan diseases that frequently have been reported to be laboratory acquired: malaria, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis (American and African), and toxoplasmosis. These diseases can be severe, even fatal, and may be difficult to diagnose. Many laboratorians who have acquired these diseases did not recall having had an accident. Of those with recognized accidents, needlestick injuries were the most common. Laboratories should have established protocols for handling specimens that may contain viable organisms and for responding to laboratory accidents.
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PMID:Laboratory-acquired malaria, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, and toxoplasmosis. 809 80

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using native gp63 for detection of serum antibodies to Leishmania was evaluated. The test identified antibodies in sera from 16 of 16 visceral leishmaniasis (VL) patients and 9 of 12 sera from patients with Trypanosoma brucei infection. In comparison, sera from 80 Danish controls and 40 control donors from a malaria endemic area of Ghana without known exposure to Leishmania were negative, as were sera from 12 Kenyan malaria patients and 9 schistosomiasis patients. After cure of VL, sera rapidly became negative. Only 1 of 7, 1 of 21, and 1 of 27 sera from cured VL patients 6-12 months, 1-2 years and > 2 years after cure were positive. Thus, in contrast to other serological tests for VL, the gp63 ELISA seems to distinguish an ongoing from a past infection. This might prove useful both for diagnostic and epidemiological purposes.
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PMID:Measurement of serum antibodies against native Leishmania gp63 distinguishes between ongoing and previous L. donovani infection. 810 16

An immunological test based on indirect (plate) ELISA has been successfully standardized and modified using promastigote soluble antigen. The test carried out on 813 subjects from a kala-azar endemic area (including parasitologically confirmed patients, subjects presenting with clinical symptoms of visceral leishmaniasis and endemic controls) and a non-endemic area (with diseases other than kala-azar and apparently normal subjects) was found to detect, specifically, antileishmanial antibodies. The plate ELISA has been simplified to a more sensitive dot-ELISA where the results are read within 2-3 h. The antigen requirement is 250 ng per test. No cross-reactivity with sera from patients of malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, amoebiasis and filariasis was observed. The follow up monitoring of antibodies in successfully treated kala-azar patients showed a decline of antibodies. A drop of blood taken on filter paper is sufficient to conduct the test. Dot ELISA therefore is a simple, inexpensive and stable test in serodiagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis.
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PMID:Evaluation of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in the diagnosis of kala-azar in Malda district (West Bengal). 814 6

In order to provide baseline data for an immuno-parasitological laboratory in Somalia, serum concentrations of IgG, IgM and IgA were determined in some key populations: healthy residents of Mogadishu (n = 157), inhabitants of the village of Daimo Samo (n = 276) and patients with malaria (n = 39) and visceral leishmaniasis (n = 26), both protozoan infections accompanied by hypergammaglobulinaemia and causing severe health problems in Somalia. Since the serum immunoglobulin concentrations in the Somali populations studied were not normally distributed, they were evaluated using medians and percentiles. Significantly higher values of IgG, IgM and IgA were demonstrated in healthy Mogadishu residents as compared to healthy Swedes. Daimo Samo villagers had significantly higher IgG and IgM values than healthy Mogadishu residents. Very high concentrations of IgG and IgM were demonstrated in sera from patients with visceral leishmaniasis. Somali patients with malaria also had marked hypergammaglobulinaemia, however, only in the IgG class. The high levels of IgG, IgM and IgA demonstrated in sera from Somalis, indicate the need for establishing local reference values and should be considered when introducing serological tests in tropical countries. Such methods are usually adopted to conditions in industrialized countries, where immunoglobulin contents of sera are lower.
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PMID:Reference ranges for IgG, IgM and IgA in the serum of urban and rural Somalis. 816 33

There is currently less than a one in a million chance that a blood transfusion within the United States will be complicated by a parasitic infection. However, changes in population demographics and increases in international travel and immigration may all contribute to an increase in the number of parasitemic individuals who present as prospective blood donors. Consequently, a need may arise to develop new policies to prevent transfusion-transmitted parasitic infections. In the present review, the following parasitic infections of concern to the safety of the US blood supply will be discussed: malaria, Chagas' disease, babesiosis, leishmaniasis, toxoplasmosis, and microfilariasis.
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PMID:Parasitic infections and their impact on blood donor selection and testing. 816 86

Tropical medicine is characterized by its focus on targeted research, which has improved biomedical knowledge for application to diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of illness. The UN Development Program/World Bank/World Health Organization Special Program for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases is promoting research to improve application of the results of targeted research. Combining a primary health care strategy with tropical medicine can help ensure that the real needs of the population will be met while research continues, maximizing effectiveness and social impact. Three examples from Peru illustrate the efficacy of this combined approach. A sanitary dermatology study was conducted in Alto Amazonas, a province of the Department of Loreto with a 1980 population estimated at 103,681 living in 68.977 sq. km of jungle. An intensive training program was held for physicians, nurses, auxiliaries, and other health personnel as well as the prospective health promoters who would participate in the pilot program to diagnose and control Hansen's disease (leprosy). The training included preparation of specimens for serological and other studies and other diagnostic procedures. Two 4-member field teams covered the entire province in 18 months, during which they censused 57,927 persons and clinically examined 47,160. After diagnosis of Hansen's disease was confirmed, a project physician or nurse initiated treatment with the multidrug regimen recommended by the World Health Organization and instructed the patient in the procedures to be followed to avoid incapacity. The auxiliary in the nearest health post supervised treatment and referred the patient to a higher level if adverse reactions occurred. 45 patients with Hansen's disease were detected during the study, along with 784 with leishmaniasis, 290 with malaria, and 164 with tuberculosis. All patients diagnosed with these conditions received treatment. A clinical and epidemiological study of leishmaniasis in Andean valleys combined health education, treatment, community development, and other interventions. The incidence of leishmaniasis has been increasing in Peru, and 15,000 new cases are projected for 1992. Active collaboration with the populations involved was sought through the primary health care system. A number of different organizations participated in the work. Field studies conducted primarily in the Purisima Valley included a census, recruiting of promoters and other health workers to diagnose cases, surveillance of new cases, systematic study of leishmaniasis vectors in houses and outside, and observation of the activity patterns of the population that might increase risk of disease. Positive correlations were found with the concentration of vectors inside houses and with seasons of increased agricultural activity. The third example concerned migrant workers from the highlands who contracted leishmaniasis in the jungle. They formed associations to seek assistance from the health system.
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PMID:[Research in tropical medicine and primary health care in Peru]. 823 94

The direct agglutination test (DAT) has been assessed as a diagnostic procedure for visceral leishmaniasis. Fifty-six of 58 sera (96.5%) from confirmed cases of visceral leishmaniasis, whose bone marrow aspirates contained Leishmania donovani amastigotes, had agglutinating antibodies above the cut-off titre of 1:800. None of the sera from healthy control subjects from non-endemic or endemic areas had anti-leishmanial antibodies. Similarly, none of the sera obtained from cases of malaria or tuberculosis had agglutinating antibodies above the cut-off titre. A significant decline in agglutinating antibody titre in 3 cases following antileishmanial chemotherapy appeared to correlate with regression of clinical symptoms and the absence of amastigotes from bone marrow aspirates. One of 3 cases developed post-kala-azar dermal lesions and sera from this subject had an elevated agglutinating antibody titre. It is concluded that the DAT is a sensitive and specific test to confirm visceral leishmaniasis. As the formalin-fixed promastigotes, stained with Coomassie blue, which are used as antigen could be stored at 4 degrees C for 6 months without any loss of ability to detect anti-leishmanial antibodies, the DAT is recommended for use under field conditions.
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PMID:Evaluation of the direct agglutination test as an immunodiagnostic tool for kala-azar in India. 823 90

Protozoan parasites are among the most prevalent pathogens worldwide. Diseases like malaria, leishmaniasis, amebiasis, and trypanosomiasis affect hundreds of millions of people. Recent advances in our understanding of the biochemistry and molecular biology of these organisms has focused attention on specific parasite molecules that are key to the parasite life cycle or the pathogenesis of the diseases they produce. One group of enzymes that plays myriad roles in these processes are the parasite-derived proteases. Different types of proteases are frequently expressed at different stages of the parasite life cycle to support parasite replication and metamorphosis. Intracellular parasites such as those that produce malaria and Chagas' disease express high levels of protease activity to efficiently degrade host proteins like hemoglobin. In other instances, such as infection with Entamoeba histolytica, the causative agent of amebiasis, proteases released by the parasite can damage host cells and tissues, contributing to host tissue damage and parasite invasion. Detailed studies of these enzymes have led to model systems for the study of parasite gene regulation, parasite metabolism, and the host-parasite interplay. In some instances, proteases appear to be promising targets for the development of new antiparasitic chemotherapy.
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PMID:The proteases and pathogenicity of parasitic protozoa. 825 17

We developed an ELISA test using leishmania antigenic extracts to detect antigen-specific antibody responses, including subclass and isotype analysis, in visceral leishmaniasis (VL) patients from the Sudan. A total of 92 parasitologically proven patients were compared with cutaneous leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, malaria, onchocerciasis and tuberculosis patients, as well as with healthy endemic and non-endemic controls. Some VL patients were examined before and after chemotherapy. VL patients showed significantly higher IgG responses compared with all other groups (93.4% sensitivity, 93.7% specificity), and higher (but not significantly) IgM responses. All groups showed low IgA levels. All IgG subclasses, IgG1, 2, 3, and 4, showed higher levels in patients than all other groups, with IgG1 and IgG3 levels being significantly reduced following treatment. The rank order for specificity and sensitivity for IgG subclasses was IgG3 > IgG1 > IgG2 > IgG4.
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PMID:The significance of blood levels of IgM, IgA, IgG and IgG subclasses in Sudanese visceral leishmaniasis patients. 830 4

Generally speaking, with rapid international travel, it is very common to diagnose infectious diseases in areas where they were not known before. Nowadays, visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is documented in Egypt mainly in Al Agamy, Alexandria. Another case of infantile visceral leishmaniasis was identified in an adult farmer (unusual host) in Banha. Other studies all over Egypt (based on clinical and or serological diagnosis rather than demonstration of the parasites) raised the possibility of adult affection with visceral leishmaniasis. The point is that visceral leishmaniasis, shares many clinical manifestations with other diseases known in Egypt as schistosomiasis mansoni, hepatic amoebiasis, toxoplasmosis, and malaria. In the present study, out of 22 human cases with hypersplenism and suggesting manifestations, four gave seropositivity for VL, by the indirect haemagglutination tests (128 & more). Two of these four patients gave seropositivity by dot-ELISA (1:8000). Amastigotes of Leishmania parasite were demonstrated in the splenic smears obtained during splenectomy. One culture obtained from these two cases grew promastigotes. Typing is ongoing. It was concluded that visceral leishmaniasis should be in mind and considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with hepatosplenomegaly or hypersplenism in Egypt.
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PMID:Visceral leishmaniasis among hypersplenic patients in Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt. 837 75


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