Longitudinal studies of the immune response of Colombian patients infected with Trypanosoma cruzi and T. rangeli

Parasitology ◽  
1988 ◽  
Vol 96 (3) ◽  
pp. 449-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Hudson ◽  
F. Guhl ◽  
N. de Sanchez ◽  
D. Bridge ◽  
C. A. Jaramillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Weight ◽  
Trypanosoma Cruzi ◽  
Longitudinal Studies ◽  
South American ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Positive Serology ◽  
High Molecular Weight Band ◽  
Antibody Titres ◽  
New Diagnosis ◽  
The Village

SUMMARYTwo groups of patients were examined for anti-Trypanosoma cruzi antibodies by immunofluorescence and ELISA (i) inhabitants of the village and surrounding rural area of Tibu, Norte de Santander, Colombia (n = 327) and (ii) employees of the Empresa Colombiana de Petroleos (ECOPETROL, n = 849). The latter group had a lower rate of positive serology (12 as compared to 29%) but the distributions of antibody titres were very similar in the two groups. A total of 119 serum samples (37 village and 82 ECOPETROL, including 25 seronegative controls) were analysed for their ability to immunoprecipitate the 7 major polypeptides of T. cruzi trypomastigotes of Mr > 72 kDa. Although 10 sera from positive patients showed no immunoprecipitation, all of the remaining positive sera contained antibodies which reacted with the 150, 90 and 85 kDa polypeptides. When the T. cruzi immunofluorescence positive, immunoprecipitation negative sera were retested by ELISA using GP90, all were negative thus suggesting that the patients had had a misdiagnosed T. rangeli infection. The new diagnosis was confirmed by immunofluorescence and ELISA with T. rangeli epimastigotes. Longitudinal studies were carried out on 19 patients from the ECOPETROL group for up to 3–5 years. Five seropositive patients showed a change in their anti-trypomastigote immunoprecipitation profiles over this period; one by loss of a previously recognized high molecular weight band and four others by conversion from a negative to a positive immunoprecipitation profile. These latter patients presented initially with uncomplicated T. rangeli infection but then acquired a T. cruzi superinfection. These patients represent the nucleus of a group in which prospective studies will identify the effect of T. rangeli infection on the course of subsequent South American trypanosomiasis and Chagas' disease.

Diagnosis of alveolar echinococcosis using immunoblotting with plural low molecular weight antigens

2009 ◽  
Vol 83 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Yamano ◽  
A. Goto ◽  
M. Miyoshi ◽  
K. Furuya ◽  
Y. Sawada ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Weight ◽  
Alveolar Echinococcosis ◽  
Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Serological Screening ◽  
Screening Process ◽  
Medical Practitioners ◽  
Specific Reactions ◽  
Hospital Outpatients ◽  
Higher Sensitivity

AbstractAlveolar echinococcosis (AE) is endemic to Hokkaido, Japan. For the past 20 years, detection of AE among inhabitants has involved serological screening using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) followed by Western blotting (WB). Between the years 1987 and 2000, antigens targeted on 66, 55 and 30–35 kDa bands were routinely used in the WB step of AE diagnosis. However, since 2001 diagnosis has been dependent on three smaller molecular weight antigens (26–28, 18 and 7–8 kDa). Due to its higher sensitivity, this improved WB approach has been used as a confirmation step in the screening process and also for the testing of suspected AE cases in hospital outpatients. Using the improved WB technique, a total of 1745 serum samples were examined in 2001–2006 with 81 patients detected and registered with AE. Interestingly, sera from 76 of the 81 diagnosed AE patients (93.8%) demonstrated reactivity with all three antigens. However, sera from the remaining five patients (6.2%) demonstrated no reactivity with the 18 kDa antigen, even though they exhibited clearly detectable levels of reactivity with the 26–28 and 7–8 kDa bands. These results suggest that medical practitioners need to pay particular attention to the specific reactions to some different diagnostic antigens to minimize the risk of misdiagnosing AE patients. In turn, these results may also provide important diagnostic information for cystic echinococcosis (CE).

scholarly journals Effects of Delayed Sample Processing on Determination of Total and High Molecular Weight (HMW) Adiponectin in Serum and Plasma: A Pilot Study

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 19
Author(s):  
Choaping Ng ◽  
Felicity J Rose ◽  
Sahar Keshvari ◽  
Marina M Reeves ◽  
Goce Dimeski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Weight ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
High Molecular Weight ◽  
Accurate Determination ◽  
Mean Difference ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Blood Samples ◽  
Hmw Adiponectin ◽  
Total Adiponectin

<p>Adiponectin is a beneficial adipocyte-secreted hormone, which circulates in a variety of multimeric forms termed low and high molecular weight (LMW/HMW). Effectiveness of clinical therapeutic trials which target adiponectin rely on accurate determination of circulating total and HMW adiponectin levels but the accuracy may be influenced by variations in sample handling processes. The aim of this pilot study was to investigate the effects of delayed processing of blood samples on the concentration of total and HMW adiponectin.</p><p>Materials and Methods: Fasting blood samples were collected for analysis of total and HMW adiponectin concentrations in EDTA plasma and serum from eight healthy participants.  Samples were centrifuged post 15 min storage at 4<sup>o</sup>C as the comparative ‘ideal’ method or after up to 72 h of refrigerated storage or 6 h at room temperature. Total and HMW adiponectin concentrations were measured by ELISA.</p><p>Results: Under ideal handling conditions measurements of total and HMW adiponectin concentrations were significantly higher in serum than in plasma (mean difference: -1.3 µg/mL [95% CI: -1.6, -1.0], p&lt;0.001; and, -0.6 µg/mL [95% CI: -0.7, -0.5], p&lt;0.001, respectively).  Storage of blood samples at 4<sup>o</sup>C for 72 h resulted in significant reductions in concentration of total adiponectin in serum (mean difference: -1.4 µg/mL [95% CI: -2.0, -0.8], p=0.001) and HMW adiponectin in plasma (mean difference: -0.6 µg/mL [95%CI: -0.9, -0.2], p=0.007), compared with ideal conditions.  Further analysis of serum samples showed a significant decrease in total adiponectin concentration after 6 h storage at 4<sup>o</sup>C (mean difference: -1.4 µg/mL [95% CI: -2.0, -0.8], p=0.001) compared with ideal conditions.</p><p>Conclusions: Delayed processing of samples may have differential effects on the concentration of total and HMW adiponectin in serum or plasma. Larger studies are warranted for clinical intervention trials.</p>

scholarly journals Triatomine Fauna and Recent Epidemiological Dynamics of Chagas Disease in an Endemic Area of Northeast Brazil

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cláudia M. Melo ◽  
Ana Carla F. G. Cruz ◽  
Antônio Fernando V. A. Lima ◽  
Luan R. Silva ◽  
Rubens R. Madi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Trypanosoma Cruzi ◽  
Disease Control ◽  
Chagas Disease ◽  
Control Program ◽  
The State ◽  
Positive Serology ◽  
Serological Tests ◽  
Systemic Analysis ◽  
South Central ◽  
Disease Control Program

Updated information of the dispersion dynamics of Chagas disease (CD) and a systemic analysis of these data will aid the early identification of areas that are vulnerable to transmission and enable efficient intervention. This work synthesized spatiotemporal information regarding triatomine fauna and analyzed this information in combination with the results from serological tests to elucidate the epidemiological panorama of CD in the state of Sergipe, Brazil. This is a retrospective analytical study that utilized information from the database of the National Chagas Disease Control Program. Between 2010 and 2016, 838 triatomines of eight species, namely, Panstrongylus geniculatus, which was first recorded in the state of Sergipe, Panstrongylus lutzi, P. megistus, Triatoma brasiliensis, T. pseudomaculata, T. tibiamaculata, T. melanocephala, and Rhodnius neglectus, were collected. Optical microscopy revealed that 13.2% of triatomines examined were infected by Trypanosoma cruzi-like flagellates. The distribution of triatomines exhibits an expanding south-central to northern dispersion, with a preference for semiarid and agreste areas and occasional observations in humid coastal areas due to anthropogenic actions reflected in the environment. Of the human cases analyzed from 2012 to 2016, 8.3% (191/2316) presented positive serology for Trypanosoma cruzi, and this proportion showed a gradual increase in the southern center of the state and new notifications in coastal regions. There is a need for intensification and continuity of the measures adopted by the Chagas Disease Control Program in Sergipe, identifying new priority areas for intervention and preferential ecotopes of the vectors, considering the occurrence of positive triatomines intradomicilliary and a source of new triatomines in the peridomiciles.

scholarly journals KNOCK! KNOCK! WHO'S THERE? AN ETHNOARCHAEOLOGICAL APPROACH IN FRENCH GUIANA

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-27
Author(s):  
Stéphen Rostain
Keyword(s):  
Field Data ◽  
French Guiana ◽  
South American ◽  
Archaeological Preservation ◽  
Ethnographic Data ◽  
Natural Degradation ◽  
Tropical Lowlands ◽  
The Village ◽  
The Guianas ◽  
Cultural Rules

Amazonia and the Guianas possess exceptional potential for ethnoarchaeological studies because of the precolumbian heritage of modern-day Amerindian people. Surprisingly, minimal scholarship of this nature has been conducted in the South American lowlands. On the French Guiana coast, Maillard, a small Palikur village, was abruptly abandoned in 1990. I initiated an ethnoarchaeological study to pinpoint important differences between the interpretation of archaeological and ethnographic data. I recorded the topography of features and remains, compiled an inventory of artifacts and the contents of discard areas, inventoried the cultivated trees present, and described the characteristics of the surroundings. After analyzing the data using classical methods of archaeological inference to obtain a complete reconstruction of the village and the customs of its inhabitants, I invited the chief into his now-abandoned village to describe the settlement as it was while inhabited. In the twenty years since, I have made several visits to track the natural degradation of the site. This ethnoarchaeological approach shows that archaeologists dealing with field data can make many mistakes. Conversely, ethnographic accounts are distorted by the cultural rules and interdictions of interviewees. This experiment suggests the need for prudence in our interpretations and hypotheses, especially in the tropical lowlands, where archaeological preservation is particularly poor.

scholarly journals Antiparasitic antibodies occur with similar frequency in patients with clinically established multiple sclerosis with or without oligoclonal bands in the cerebrospinal fluid

2013 ◽  
Vol 71 (8) ◽  
pp. 512-515 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabiana Cruz Gomes da Fonseca-Papavero ◽  
Dagoberto Callegaro ◽  
Paulo Diniz da Gama ◽  
Jose Antonio Livramento ◽  
Adelaide Jose Vaz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Sclerosis ◽  
Molecular Weight ◽  
High Molecular Weight ◽  
Hygiene Hypothesis ◽  
Oligoclonal Bands ◽  
Parasitic Infections ◽  
Low Molecular Weight ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Similar Frequency ◽  
Electrophoresis Of Proteins

The "hygiene hypothesis" postulates an inverse relationship between the prevalence of parasitic infections and the frequency of multiple sclerosis (MS). Objective: It was to study whether antibodies against parasites could be demonstrated more frequently in blood serum from MS patients with oligoclonal bands (OCB) than from MS patients without OCB. Methods: We studied serum samples from 164 patients who had previously been analyzed to investigate OCB. Parasitic antibodies were studied through unidimensional electrophoresis of proteins on polyacrylamide gel against Taenia antigens, searching for antiparasitic specific low molecular weight antibodies and also for antiparasitic nonspecific high molecular weight antibodies. Results: Two of the 103 patients with no evidence of OCB had antibodies of low molecular weight and 59 of them had antibodies of high molecular weight. Of the 61 patients with evidence of OCB, one showed antibodies of low molecular weight and 16 showed antibodies of high molecular weight. Conclusion: Antiparasitic antibodies are detected with similar frequency in MS patients with OCB and in MS patients without OCB.

scholarly journals Prognostic Role of Serum Cytokeratin-19 Fragment (CYFRA 21-1) in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Cancers ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 2776 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gian Paolo Caviglia ◽  
Michela Ciruolo ◽  
Antonella Olivero ◽  
Patrizia Carucci ◽  
Emanuela Rolle ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽  
Cox Regression ◽  
Treatment Strategies ◽  
Stem Cell Marker ◽  
Rank Test ◽  
Cytokeratin 19 ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Cox Regression Analysis ◽  
Keratin 19 ◽  
New Diagnosis

Keratin 19 (K19) is a cancer stem cell marker expressed by a subpopulation of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), associated with tumor aggressiveness. We evaluated the prognostic value of serum K19 fragment (CYFRA 21-1), in comparison or in combination with alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and protein induced by vitamin-K absence or antagonist-II (PIVKA-II), in patients with HCC. A total of 160 patients (28F/132M; median age 62, range 44–86 years) with a new diagnosis of HCC and available serum samples collected at tumor diagnosis were analyzed retrospectively. Median overall survival (OS) after HCC diagnosis was 35.1, 95% CI 27.1–70.5 months. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that CYFRA 21-1 > 2.7 ng/mL (hazard ratio (HR) = 3.39, p < 0.001), AFP > 20 ng/mL (HR = 2.27, p = 0.007), and PIVKA-II > 200 mAU/mL (HR = 2.17, p = 0.020) were independent predictors of OS. The combination of biomarkers positivity allowed us to stratify patients with HCC into four risk categories associated with a progressively lower survival probability (log-rank test, p < 0.001). CYFRA 21-1 resulted an independent prognostic factor of patients with HCC and its combination with AFP and PIVKA-II might be useful to tailor personalized treatment strategies.

The phylogenetic relationships of the two-winged South American Leptophlebiidae genera revisited with first description of the male imago of Bessierus Thomas & Orth (Insecta: Ephemeroptera)

Zootaxa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4674 (3) ◽  
pp. 375-385
Author(s):  
EDUARDO DOMÍNGUEZ ◽  
MARÍA GABRIELA CUEZZO ◽  
SIMÓN CLAVIER
Keyword(s):  
Sister Group ◽  
Sister Group Relationship ◽  
South American ◽  
Phylogenetic Hypothesis ◽  
New Information ◽  
Statistical Support ◽  
The Stability ◽  
New Diagnosis ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
First Time

Four of the 43 genera of South American Leptophlebiidae are dipterous. A previous phylogenetic hypothesis supported that clade Askola+Hagenulopsis, and that Bessierus+Perissophlebiodes, are sister groups of the Farrodes complex. Adults of Bessierus and Perissophlebiodes were not known but posteriorly Perissophlebiodes male imago was described. Here, we describe the male imago of Bessierus for the first time. Both genera share, besides the absence of the hind wings, the asymmetrical fork of MA, symmetrical fork of MP, dissimilar tarsal claws, and forceps sockets fused. Along with the description of the imago, a new diagnosis for the genus Bessierus is presented, also updating the identification key with this new information. A new cladistics analysis is performed to test the stability of the proposed relationships of these four genera within Leptophlebiidae. We obtained a single cladistic hypothesis where the addition of Bessierus adult characters resulted in new synapomorphies for the (Bessierus, Perissophlebiodes) clade, and improved its clade statistical support. The fused forceps sockets resulted in a synapomorphy uniting Bessierus, Perissophlebiodes and Simothraulopsis. As a result of this new analysis, the hypothesis of independent losses of the hind wings in the two dipterous groups studied is supported. The Farrodes lineage is not supported as proposed in previous studies, being restricted only to (Farrodes (Simothraulopsis, Homothraulus)) while the identity of “Perissophlebiodes lineage” is supported. The sister group relationship of Rondophlebia is not clearly defined. 

scholarly journals Frequency of toxocara infection in children attended by the health public service of Maringá, south Brazil

2007 ◽  
Vol 49 (6) ◽  
pp. 343-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Márcia L. Paludo ◽  
Dina L.M. Falavigna ◽  
Guita R. Elefant ◽  
Mônica L. Gomes ◽  
Magda L.M. Baggio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Signs And Symptoms ◽  
Toxocara Canis ◽  
Public Health Services ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Positive Serology ◽  
Gastrointestinal Problems ◽  
Prevention Activities ◽  
Secretory Products ◽  
South Brazil

The lack of specific laboratorial diagnosis methods and precise symptoms makes the toxocariasis a neglected disease in Public Health Services. This study aims to determine the frequency of Toxocara spp. infection in children attended by the Health Public Service of Hospital Municipal de Maringá, South Brazil. To evaluate the association of epidemiological and clinical data, an observational and cross-section study was carried out. From 14,690 attended children/year aged from seven month to 12 years old, 450 serum samples were randomly collected from September/2004 to September/2005. A questionnaire was used to evaluate epidemiological, clinical and hematological data. An ELISA using Toxocara canis larval excretory-secretory products as antigen detected 130 (28.8%) positive sera, mainly between children from seven month to five years old (p = 0.0016). Significant correlation was observed between positive serology for Toxocara, and frequent playing in sandbox at school or daycare center (p = 0.011) and the presence of a cat at home (p = 0.056). From the families, 50% were dog owners which exposed soil backyards. Eosinophilia (p = 0.776), and signs and symptoms analyzed (fever p = 0.992, pneumonia p = 0.289, cold-like symptoms p = 0.277, cough p = 0.783, gastrointestinal problems p = 0.877, migraine p = 0.979, abdominal pain p = 0.965, joint pain p = 0.686 and skin rash p = 0.105) could not be related to the presence of anti-Toxocara antibodies. Therefore, two asthmatics children showed titles of 1:10,240 and accentuated eosinophilia (p = 0.0001). The authors emphasize the needs of prevention activities.

scholarly journals Investigations on the incidence of rinderpest virus infection in game animals of N. Tanganyika and S. Kenya 1960/63

1967 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 343-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Plowright ◽  
B. McCulloch
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Signs ◽  
Neutralizing Antibody ◽  
Low Grade ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Antibody Titres ◽  
Low Incidence ◽  
Connochaetes Taurinus ◽  
Low Rate ◽  
Game Animals

The incidence of rinderpest infection in game animals in selected localities of South Kenya and North Tanganyika was studied during the period 1960 to 1963. Serum samples from 590 wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus), 48 eland (Taurotragus oryx), 65 Thompson's gazelle (Gazella thompsoni) and 39 Grant's gazelle (Gazella granti) were tested for rinderpest neutralizing antibody.Rinderpest infection was shown to have been very frequent in yearling wilde-beest in the Mara area of Kenya in 1959/60, in the Serengeti National Park of Tanganyika in late 1960 and also in the Serengeti, and some adjacent areas, during the latter half of 1961. In the Ngorongoro Crater in 1961 infection was far less widespread, with only 11% of the yearlings acquiring antibody, compared to 67% in the Serengeti. The infections in 1959 and 1960 were clinical epizootics, accompanied by a considerable mortality, whereas no overt disease was reported in the course of 1961. Eland were affected in a similar manner to wildebeest up to 1960 but only a low rate of serological conversion was demonstrated in 1961. Adult Thompson's gazelle showed a low rate (ca. 12%) of infection but no anti-body was detected in Grant's gazelle.Only a small proportion of the wildebeest calves born in early 1962 acquired antibody by mid-1963 and this was due, at least in part, to infection late in 1962; it was not clear, unfortunately, whether the positive animals belonged entirely to resident, as opposed to migratory, groups. No clinical signs or mortality were reported in this year.A low incidence of rinderpest infection in wildebeest was also demonstrated both before and after 1960 in the Kajiado district of Kenya, where disease of game has not been reported in recent years. It is possible that the positive animals, as also the 1962 cases in Tanganyika, acquired the virus from low-grade infections of cattle.The transmission of rinderpest antibody from wildebeest dam to calf, presumably via the colostrum, was demonstrated regularly, except in six calves about 1–2 weeks old. No completely satisfactory explanation was obtained for their failure to acquire passive antibody but it may have been due to abnormal disturbance in the herds, associated with the shooting. The antibody titres in calves were initially higher than those in the serum of their dams but by the end of the 3rd month this position had been reversed. Individual calves became serologically negative from about the 10th week of life and all were devoid of antibody by the 6th to 7th month. The half-life of passively-acquired antibody was 4·4 weeks.

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