Field evaluation of a rapid-format kit for the diagnosis of bancroftian filariasis in Egypt

The AMRAD-ICT Filariasis Test [ICT-Fil] is a new, rapid-format card test for the detection of bancroftian antigenaemia in human blood. We evaluated the performance of the test under field conditions in Egypt by comparing 1813 endemic and 102 nonendemic participants. Endemic participants were tested for microfilaraemia [thick smear and membrane filtration] and serum antigenaemia [ELISA]. The infection rates detected were 2.8% by thick smear, 3.5% by membrane filtration, 8.8% by ELISA and 9.0% by ICT-Fil. The card test detected antigenaemia in 98.0% and 95.3% of microfilaraemia carriers testing positive by thick smear and blood filtration respectively. Nonendemic participants were ICT-Fil negative. Identical results were obtained for 173 out of 184 [94%] endemic participants tested by the serum and whole blood ICT-Fil versions

Histopathological and histochemical changes in response to clobazam on liver and kidney tissues of female pregnant albino rats

present study deals with the histopathological and histochemical effects of clobazam on liver and kidney of pregnant rats. Clobazam is being used extensively as hypontic drug. The two doses of clobazam were orally administered at the level of 0.09 or 0.27 mg/100 gm body weight of pregnant rats, at 6-14 and 6-19 day of gestation. The liver tissue, showed laceration of blood sinusoids and some of the central veins in addition to cellular damage. The kidney of the treated animals manifested deformation of the structure of the glomeruli and blocking of the renal tubules with a mucous sbstance. Histochemical studies on the effect of clobazam n carbohydrates and total protein content in liver and kidney tissue of the treated pregnant rate were examined. Carbohydrates content in tissues of liver and kidney of the treated groups showed sigificnat reduction while signficant elevation in total protein content in liver was found, may a normal or undetectable changes in the protein content in kidney tissue was observed. The present results revealed that clobazam exert histopathological effects on the liver and kidney tissues of pregnant rats