ABSTRACT
A total of 438 household contacts of leprosy patients and 228 non-contacts were studied for anti-PGL-I antibodies and cell mediated immune response to Mycobacterium leprae using ELISA and lepromin tests. The contacts showed relatively higher positivity to ELISA (29.4%) and lepromin (70.5%) as compared to non-contacts who showed 9.6 and 57 per cent positivity. In contacts as well as non-contacts the seropositivity was not found to be influenced by age and sex. However, seropositivity was higher (39.7%) in the contacts of patients with multibacillary leprosy as compared to contacts (27.7%) of patients with paucibacillary leprosy.
Subject(s)
Adolescent , Adult , Antibodies, Bacterial/blood , Child , Child, Preschool , Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay , Female , Humans , Immunity, Cellular , Immunoglobulin M/analysis , Lepromin/immunology , Leprosy/immunology , Male , Middle Aged , Mycobacterium leprae/immunologyABSTRACT
870 household contacts of leprosy patients were examined for sub-clinical infection with M. leprae by smear (skin and nasal), lepromin and FLA-ABS tests. 0.6%, 3.3%, 71.5% and 14.4% of the contacts were found to be positive for skin smear, nasal smear, lepromin and FLA-ABS tests respectively. An analysis of the results revealed that 4% of the lepromin positive contacts and 3.6% of the lepromin negative contacts were positive to both FLA-ABS and skin or nasal smear.
Subject(s)
Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Housing , Humans , Infant , Lepromin/diagnosis , Leprosy/microbiology , Male , Middle Aged , Mycobacterium leprae/isolation & purification , Skin/microbiologyABSTRACT
Blood samples were collected from 59 leprosy patients and 35 normal healthy subjects by veni-puncture and finger prick methods to obtain serum samples and blood spots on filter paper respectively. The serum samples at 1:300 dilutions and the eluates of dried blood spots at 1:40, 1:80, 1:160 and 1:320 dilutions were applied in ELISA to measure the antibody levels (IgM) against synthetic ND-O-BSA antigen. The antibody levels were found to be high in the multibacillary leprosy patients than the pauci-bacillary patients irrespective of whether serum samples or eluates were used. The OD values obtained at 1:160 dilution of the eluates were equivalent to that of values obtained at 1:300 dilution of the serum samples. The positivities differ in different dilution of the eluates, showing the highest in the 1:40 dilution and the lowest in the 1:320 dilution.
Subject(s)
Blood Specimen Collection/methods , Disaccharides , Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/methods , False Negative Reactions , Glycolipids/diagnosis , Humans , Leprosy/diagnosis , Serologic Tests , Serum Albumin, Bovine/diagnosisABSTRACT
Using Polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic technique, the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) isoenzyme patterns have been studied in four slow growing mycobacteria viz. Mycobacterium tuberculosis, M. avium, M. microti, and M. bovis and four rapid growing mycobacteria viz. M. Fortuitum, M. parafortuitum, M. thermoresistible and M. diernhoferi. Each mycobacterial species exhibited distinct isoenzyme pattern for LDH.
Subject(s)
Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel , Isoenzymes , L-Lactate Dehydrogenase/metabolism , Mycobacterium/enzymology , Mycobacterium avium/enzymology , Mycobacterium bovis/enzymology , Mycobacterium tuberculosis/enzymologyABSTRACT
Serum LDH (total) and LDH isoenzymes were studied in leprosy patients undergoing multidrug treatment. Serum LDH (total) did not show any significant difference between normal human subjects and patients but LDH isoenzymes have shown elevated levels in LDH4 and LDH5 in leprosy patients. The M/H ratios were high in leprosy patients and they exhibited a further rise in patients on treatment.