ABSTRACT
Objective:To explore risk of school-age children being infected with schistosomiasis in selected villages in the municipality of Calatrava, province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. Methods:As part of the monitoring and evaluation of the helminth control program in the province of Negros Occidental, parasitological monitoring, through the use microscopy of stool samples processed using Kato-Katz technique, was conducted to describe the baseline and follow-up parasitological status of school-age children in 2010 and 2012, respectively. Seven villages from the municipality of Calatrava were selected as study sites.Results:During baseline assessment, only one case of schistosomiasis was reported from the village of Marcelo. During follow-up assessment, 32 cases (6.9%) of schistosomiasis were reported and the prevalence of moderate-heavy intensity infection was 1.3% in six villages. Among the seven villages included in the follow-up, Minapasuk had the highest prevalence at 14.6%, while San Isidro reported no case of schistosomiasis.Conclusions:Non-endemic villages, which have reported positive cases in school-age children, may need to be assessed for possible endemicity for schistosomiasis. Transmission of the disease may need to be determined in these villages through active parasitological and malacological surveillance. Other non-endemic villages adjacent to or share river networks with endemic villages in Calatrava may need to be explored for possible introduction of the disease, especially after typhoons and flooding. Establishing endemicity for schistosomiasis in these villages will help infected and at risk individuals to receive yearly treatment to reduce morbidities caused by this disease.
ABSTRACT
Objective: To explore risk of school-age children being infected with schistosomiasis in selected villages in the municipality of Calatrava, province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. Methods: As part of the monitoring and evaluation of the helminth control program in the province of Negros Occidental, parasitological monitoring, through the use microscopy of stool samples processed using Kato-Katz technique, was conducted to describe the baseline and follow-up parasitological status of school-age children in 2010 and 2012, respectively. Seven villages from the municipality of Calatrava were selected as study sites. Results: During baseline assessment, only one case of schistosomiasis was reported from the village of Marcelo. During follow-up assessment, 32 cases (6.9%) of schistosomiasis were reported and the prevalence of moderate-heavy intensity infection was 1.3% in six villages. Among the seven villages included in the follow-up, Minapasuk had the highest prevalence at 14.6%, while San Isidro reported no case of schistosomiasis. Conclusions: Non-endemic villages, which have reported positive cases in school-age children, may need to be assessed for possible endemicity for schistosomiasis. Transmission of the disease may need to be determined in these villages through active parasitological and malacological surveillance. Other non-endemic villages adjacent to or share river networks with endemic villages in Calatrava may need to be explored for possible introduction of the disease, especially after typhoons and flooding. Establishing endemicity for schistosomiasis in these villages will help infected and at risk individuals to receive yearly treatment to reduce morbidities caused by this disease.
ABSTRACT
Objective To optimize the conditions of the expression of fusion protein GST-SjMP10 and to evaluate the value of fusion protein GST-SjMP10 for diagnosis of schistosomiasis.Methods The optimal concentration of IPTG for the expression of fusion protein GST-SjMP10 was chosen in inducing the expression of GST-SjMP10 with different concentration of IPTG,and the soluble fusion protein GST-SjMP10 was identified by SDS-PAGE.The fusion protein GST-SjMP10 was purified by chromatographic affinity with glutathione Sepharose 4B gel.The sensitivity and specificity of purified fusion protein GST-SjMP10 for diagnosis of schistosomiasis were determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)to detect the IgG antibody in sera from the patients with acute schistosomiasis,advanced schistosomiasis and clonorchiasis as well as healthy subjects.Results Most of the expressed fusion protein GST-SjMP10 was in soluble status when the concentration of IPTG was reduced to 0.1 mmol/L and the fusion protein GST-SjMP10 could be purified by chromatographic affinity.The positive rate of anti-GST-SjMP10 antibody in the sera from the patients with acute and chronic schistosomiasis japonica was 97.5% and 96.7% respectively.No cross reactivity of the fusion protein GST-SjMP10 was found in the detection for the sera from clonorchiasis patients,and no false positive was found in the detection for the sera of healthy subjects.Conclusion The fusion protein GST-SjMP10 was expressed successfully and showed high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of schistosomiasis japonicum.
ABSTRACT
Objective To understand the effect of Schistosoma infection on the gestation in mice.\ Methods Female mice infected with Schistosoma japonicum cercariae, and mated with male mice (uninfected) at 40 d and 100 d post\|infection, the changes during pregnant period and the growth of offspring were observed until birth. The serum level of estradiol and progesterone of the infected mice was measured by RIA at oestrus.\ Results The level of estradiol and progesterone, and the pregnant rate were much lower in schistosome infected group than that of the control. The rate of abortion, the mortality of pregnant mice and the death rate due to abortion of infected mice increased significantly. The mortality increased with the time of merging ♀ and ♂mice in one cage prolonged. The body weight and length of the offspring in both infected and control groups were found no significant difference.\ Conclusion The results revealed that schistosome infection may suppress estradiol and progesterone secretion, decrease the rate of pregnancy, and that it may also increase the complications and mortality during the gestation periods.