Diagnosing infection levels of four human malaria parasite species by a polymerase chain reaction/ligase detection reaction fluorescent microsphere-based assay.

ABSTRACT: Improving strategies for diagnosing infection by the four human Plasmodium species parasites is important as field-based epidemiologic and clinical studies focused on malaria become more ambitious. Expectations for malaria diagnostic assays include rapid processing with minimal expertise, very high specificity and sensitivity, and quantitative evaluation of parasitemia to be delivered at a very low cost. Toward fulfilling many of these expectations, we have developed a post-polymerase chain reaction (PCR)/ligase detection reaction-fluorescent microsphere assay (LDR-FMA). This assay, which uses Luminex FlexMAP microspheres, provides simultaneous, semi-quantitative detection of infection by all four human malaria parasite species at a sensitivity and specificity equal to other PCR-based assa

SUBMITTER: McNamara DT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3728833 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature