Selection of antigens and development of prototype tests for point-of-care leprosy diagnosis.

ABSTRACT: Leprosy can be a devastating chronic infection that causes nerve function impairment and associated disfigurement. Despite the recent reduction in the number of registered worldwide leprosy cases as a result of the widespread use of multidrug therapy, the number of new cases detected each year remains relatively stable. The diagnosis of leprosy is currently based on the appearance of clinical signs and requires expert clinical, as well as labor-intensive and time-consuming laboratory or histological, evaluation. For the purpose of developing an effective, simple, rapid, and low-cost diagnostic alternative, we have analyzed the serologic antibody response to identify Mycobacterium leprae proteins that are recognized by leprosy patients. More than 100 recombinant antigens were analyzed in a

SUBMITTER: Duthie MS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2565937 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature