Diagnosis, Diagnostics, Immunodiagnosis & Immunodiagnostics:

13339.  Geluk A, Klein MR, Franken KL, van Meijgaarden KE, Wieles B, Pereira KC, Buhrer-Sekula S, Klatser PR, Brennan PJ, Spencer JS, Williams DL, Pessolani MC, Sampaio EP, Ottenhoff TH. Postgenomic approach to identify novel Mycobacterium leprae antigens with potential to improve immunodiagnosis of infection. Infect Immun. 2005 Sep;73(9):5636-44.

Pathogenesis:

13340.  Ohyama H, Ogata K, Takeuchi K, Namisato M, Fukutomi Y, Nishimura F, Naruishi H, Ohira T, Hashimoto K, Liu T, Suzuki M, Uemura Y, Matsushita S. Polymorphism of the 5' flanking region of the IL-12 receptor beta2 gene partially determines the clinical types of leprosy through impaired transcriptional activity. J Clin Pathol. 2005 Jul;58(7):740-3.

13341.  Pereira RM, Calegari-Silva TC, Hernandez MO, Saliba AM, Redner P, Pessolani MC, Sarno EN, Sampaio EP, Lopes UG.  Mycobacterium leprae induces NF-kappaB-dependent transcription repression in human Schwann cells. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2005 Sep 16;335(1):20-6.

Therapy:

13342.  McInturff JE, Modlin RL, Kim J. The role of toll-like receptors in the pathogenesis and treatment of dermatological disease. J Invest Dermatol. 2005 Jul;125(1):1-8. Review.

13343.  World Health Organization. Global leprosy situation, 2005. Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2005 Aug 26;80(34):289-95.

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Diagnosis, Diagnostics, Immunodiagnosis & Immunodiagnostics:

13899.   Lolge SJ, Morani AC, Chaubal NG, Khopkar US. Sonographically guided nerve biopsy. J Ultrasound Med. 2005 Oct;24(10):1427-30.

Pathogenesis:

13900.     Ellertsen LK, Wiker HG, Egeberg NT, Hetland G. Allergic sensitisation in tuberculosis and leprosy patients. Int Arch Allergy Immunol. 2005 Nov;138(3):217-24. 

13901.   Montagna NA, de Oliveira ML, Mandarim-de-Lacerda CA, Chimelli L. Leprosy: contribution of mast cells to epineurial collagenization. Clin Neuropathol. 2005 Nov-Dec;24(6):284-90.

13902.   Oliveira RB, Sampaio EP, Aarestrup F, Teles RM, Silva TP, Oliveira AL, Antas PR, Sarno EN. Cytokines and Mycobacterium leprae induce apoptosis in human Schwann cells. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol. 2005 Oct;64(10):882-90.

13903.   Ranque B, Alcais A, Thuc NV, Woynard S, Thai VH, Huong NT, Ba NN, Khoa PX, Schurr E, Abel L. A recessive major gene controls the mitsuda reaction in a region endemic for leprosy. J Infect Dis. 2005 Oct 15;192(8):1475-82.

13904.  Vijayaraghavan R, Suribabu CS, Sekar B, Oommen PK, Kavithalakshmi SN, Madhusudhanan N, Panneerselvam C. Protective role of vitamin E on the oxidative stress in Hansen's disease (Leprosy) patients. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2005 Oct;59(10):1121-8.

13905.     Zhang L, Budiawan T, Matsuoka M. Diversity of potential short tandem repeats in Mycobacterium leprae and application for molecular typing. J Clin Microbiol. 2005 Oct;43(10):5221-9. 

Therapy:

13906.   Moonot P, Ashwood N, Lockwood D. Orthopaedic complications of leprosy. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 2005 Oct;87(10):1328-32. Review.

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July 2006

Diagnosis, Diagnostics, Immunodiagnosis & Immunodiagnostics:

14391. Chedore P, Broukhanski G, Shainhouse Z, Jamieson F. False-positive amplified Mycobacterium tuberculosis direct test results for samples containing Mycobacterium leprae. J Clin Microbiol. 2006 Feb;44(2):612-3.

Therapy:

14397. World Health Organization. WHO global strategy for further reducing the leprosy burden and sustaining leprosy control activities (Plan period: 2006-2010). Indian J Lepr. 2006  Jan-Mar;78(1):7-31. Review.

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October 2006

Some selected abstract:

1

Scollard DM, Adams LB, Gillis TP, Krahenbuhl JL, Truman RW, Williams DL. The continuing challenges of leprosy. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2006 Apr;19(2):338-81. Review.

Laboratory Research Branch, National Hansen's Disease Programs, LSU-SVM, Skip Bertman Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA. dscoll1@lsu.edu

Leprosy is best understood as two conjoined diseases. The first is a chronic mycobacterial infection that elicits an extraordinary range of cellular immune responses in humans. The second is a peripheral neuropathy that is initiated by the infection and the accompanying immunological events. The infection is curable but not preventable, and leprosy remains a major global health problem, especially in the developing world, publicity to the contrary notwithstanding. Mycobacterium leprae remains noncultivable, and for over a century leprosy has presented major challenges in the fields of microbiology, pathology, immunology, and genetics; it continues to do so today. This review focuses on recent advances in our understanding of M. leprae and the host response to it, especially concerning molecular identification of M. leprae, knowledge of its genome, transcriptome, and proteome, its mechanisms of microbial resistance, and recognition of strains by variable-number tandem repeat analysis. Advances in experimental models include studies in gene knockout mice and the development of molecular techniques to explore the armadillo model. In clinical studies, notable progress has been made concerning the immunology and immunopathology of leprosy, the genetics of human resistance, mechanisms of nerve injury, and chemotherapy. In nearly all of these areas, however, leprosy remains poorly understood compared to other major bacterial diseases.

Pathogenesis:

14745.  Daniel E, Ffytche TJ, Sundar Rao PS, Kempen JH, Diener-West M, Courtright P. Incidence of ocular morbidity among multibacillary leprosy patients during a 2 year course of multidrug therapy. Br J Ophthalmol. 2006 May;90(5):568-73.

Therapy:

14746.  Crawford CL. No role for thalidomide in the treatment of leprosy. J Infect Dis. 2006 Jun 15;193(12):1743-4; author reply 1744-5.

14747.  Padma TV. With scores still infected, India declares leprosy 'eliminated'. Nat Med. 2006 Apr;12(4):372.

14748.  Pocaterra L, Jain S, Reddy R, Muzaffarullah S, Torres O, Suneetha S, Lockwood DN. Clinical course of erythema nodosum leprosum: an 11-year cohort study in Hyderabad, India. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2006 May;74(5):868-79.

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