Angiostrongylus costaricensis egg antigen for the immunodiagnosis of abdominal angiostrongyliasis.

Abstract

Angiostrongylus costaricensis is the aetiological agent of human abdominal angiostrongyliasis, a parasitic disease reported from the United States to Argentina, with a widespread occurrence of the nematode throughout Central and South America. This study assesses the performance of A. costaricensis eggs as antigen in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), for the determination of parasite-specific IgG1 antibodies. The specificity and the sensitivity of the method were 87% and 90.5%, respectively. Through this test it was possible to demonstrate a sharp and early decline in IgG1 antibody in serum samples taken from patients with histopathological diagnosis of abdominal angiostrongyliasis at different time points after surgical treatment. The present work demonstrated the usefulness of the egg antigen in the development of a specific diagnostic test for abdominal angiostrongylosis.

• Authors: P Mesén-Ramírez, E Abrahams-Sandí, K Fernández-Quesada, P Morera
• Journal: Journal of helminthology (J Helminthol) Vol. 82 Issue 3 Pg. 251-4 (Sep 2008) ISSN: 0022-149X [Print] England
• PMID: 18462556 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Antibodies, Helminth
• Antigens, Helminth
• Culture Media
• Immunoglobulin G

Topics

• Abdomen (parasitology, surgery)
• Angiostrongylus (isolation & purification)
• Animals
• Antibodies, Helminth (blood, isolation & purification)
• Antigens, Helminth (blood, isolation & purification)
• Central America (epidemiology)
• Cross Reactions
• Culture Media
• Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
• Humans
• Immunoglobulin G (blood)
• Immunologic Tests (methods)
• Parasite Egg Count
• Sensitivity and Specificity
• South America (epidemiology)
• Strongylida Infections (diagnosis, epidemiology, surgery)