Selected abstract:

1.                  Weil GJ, Ramzy RM.  Diagnostic tools for filariasis elimination programs. Trends Parasitol. 2007 Feb;23(2):78-82. 

Infectious Diseases Division, Washington University School of Medicine, Campus Box 8051, 660 South Euclid Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA. gweil@wustl.edu

The ambitious and exciting Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF) is largely based on a strategy of mass drug administration (MDA) of repeated rounds of antifilarial medications to endemic populations around the world. Diagnostic tools are important to GPELF because they affect decisions regarding where to distribute MDA, how to measure its effects, how to define targets and endpoints for stopping MDA, and how to monitor populations for possible resurgence of filariasis transmission following suspension of MDA. This article reviews available diagnostic tests for filariasis and their potential use as tools for different phases of filariasis elimination programs.

Diagnosis, Diagnostics, Immunodiagnosis & Immunodiagnostics:

15797.  Bhandari YP, Anandharaman V, Gajalaxshmi D, Goswami K, Reddy MVR. Analysis of morphological variations in Wuchereria bancrofti microfilariae collected from different endemic zones. The Journal of Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, 2006 September, 11(2): 22-27.

15798.  Dixit V, Subhadra AV, Bisen PS, Harinath BC, Prasad GB.  Antigen-specific immune complexes in urine of patients with lymphatic filariasis. J Clin Lab Anal. 2007;21(1):46-8.

15799.  Fischer P, Erickson SM, Fischer K, Fuchs JF, Rao RU, Christensen BM, Weil GJ.   Persistence of Brugia malayi DNA in vector and non-vector mosquitoes: implications for xenomonitoring and transmission monitoring of lymphatic filariasis. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2007 Mar;76(3):502-7. 

Vaccines:  

15800.  Pokharel DR, Rai R, Kodumudi NK, Reddy MVR & Rathaur S.Vaccination with Setaria cervi 175 kDa collagenase induces high level of protection against Brugia malayi infection in Jirds. Vaccine, 2006 September; 24 (37-39): 6208-6215.