Publicaties
Trypanosome SL-RNA detection in blood and cerebrospinal fluid to demonstrate active gambiense human African trypanosomiasis infection Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
BACKGROUND: Spliced Leader (SL) trypanosome RNA is detectable only in the presence of live trypanosomes, is abundant and the Trypanozoon subgenus has a unique sequence. As previously shown in blood from Guinean human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) patients, SL-RNA is an accurate target for diagnosis. Detection of SL-RNA in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) has never been attempted. In a large group of Congolese gambiense HAT patients, the present ...
Parasite detection in food: current status and future needs for validation Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
Background: Many parasites (protozoa and helminths) can be transmitted through food and lead to infections with high morbidity, as well as disease outbreaks. Although the importance of foodborne parasites (FBP) is recognised by many sectors of the food industry, standardized analytical methods and validation procedures for testing food for FBP are lacking.
Scope and approach:Current methods for detection of FBP, and their validation, ...
Nucleic acid and antigen detection tests for leptospirosis Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
Background
Early diagnosis of leptospirosis may contribute to the effectiveness of antimicrobial therapy and early outbreak recognition. Nucleic acid and antigen detection tests have the potential for early diagnosis of leptospirosis. With this systematic review, we assessed the sensitivity and specificity of nucleic acid and antigen detection tests.
Objectives
To determine the diagnostic test accuracy of nucleic acid ...
Leishmania antigenuria to predict initial treatment failure and relapse in visceral leishmaniasis/HIV coinfected patients: an exploratory study nested within a clinical trial in Ethiopia Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
Background: Biomarkers predicting the risk of VL treatment failure and relapse in VL/HIV coinfected patients are needed. Nested within a two-site clinical trial in Ethiopia (2011-2015), we conducted an exploratory study to assess whether (1) levels of Leishmania antigenuria measured at VL diagnosis were associated with initial treatment failure and (2) levels of Leishmania antigenuria at the end of treatment (parasitologically-confirmed cure) ...
Accuracy of a rapid diagnostic test based on antigen detection for the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis in patients with suggestive skin lesions in Morocco Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde Universiteit Antwerpen
In rural areas in Morocco, diagnosing cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) can be challenging. We evaluated the accuracy of a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) based on antigen detection, CL Detect Rapid Test™ (Inbios International Inc., Seattle, WA), in this setting. We consecutively recruited patients with new skin ulcers in nine primary health centers. We took a dental broach sample for the RDT and two other tissue samples by scraping the border and ...
Brucella abortus is prevalent in both humans and animals in Bangladesh Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
To determine the role of different Brucella (B.) spp. in Bangladesh, 62 animal samples and 500 human sera were tested. Animal samples from cattle, goats and sheep (including milk, bull semen, vaginal swabs and placentas) were cultured for Brucella spp. Three test-positive human sera and all animal samples were screened by Brucella genus-specific real-time PCR (RT-PCR), and positive samples were then tested by IS711 RT-PCR to detect B.abortus ...
Seroprevalence of brucellosis in patients with prolonged fever in Bangladesh Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
Introduction: This study describes the seroprevalence of human brucellosis among pyretic patients and detection of Brucella abortus DNA from seropositive pyretic patients using real- time polymerase chain reaction (rtPCR) for the first time in Bangladesh.
Methodology: Blood samples were collected from 300 pyretic patients from October 2007 to May 2008 and subjected to three serological tests: Rose- Bengal plate test (RBT), standard ...
Comparative study of the discriminating capacity and effectiveness of AFLP, STMS and EST markers in assessing genetic relationships among evergreen azaleas Instituut voor Landbouw-, Visserij- en Voedingsonderzoek
Immunovirological discordance among female sex workers who start antiretroviral therapy in Burkina Faso Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
In people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) leads to sustained effective suppression of viral replication and increasing CD4 + T cell count. However, a fraction of ART-treated patients still fail to reach adequate CD4 + T cell number despite a suppressed viral load (VL), and this phenomenon is defined as immunovirological discordance (IVD). In Africa, several studies have reported ...