ABSTRACT
The aim of this systematic review was to investigate the studies that evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of serologic tests using recombinant protein antigens from Mycobacterium leprae for leprosy diagnosis. We included 13 studies that were available in PubMed, Brazilian Virtual Library of Health, Web of Science, ScienceDirect and Scopus. From these studies, we found that the recombinant serine-rich 45-kDa protein of M. leprae (ML0411) demonstrated high performance for multibacillary (MB) also to paucibacillary (PB) patients, although this study was tested only for Indian population. Despite that, studies using the ND-O-LID antigen have been able to more accurately identify new cases of leprosy among people living in endemic or non-endemic areas and household contacts in Brazil, Colombia, and the Philippines, especially when combined with other biomarkers. Finally, low sensitivity values for PB patients' antibodies response remain challenging for tests intended to diagnose clinical forms that comprise this classification in leprosy.
Subject(s)
Leprosy , Mycobacterium leprae , Recombinant Proteins , Serologic Tests , Antibodies, Bacterial/blood , Antigens, Bacterial/metabolism , Brazil , Colombia , Humans , Leprosy/diagnosis , Mycobacterium leprae/immunology , Philippines , Recombinant Proteins/metabolism , Reproducibility of Results , Serologic Tests/standardsABSTRACT
The interconnection between immune and neuroendocrine systems influences regulation of inflammatory responses. The possible relevance that this integrative response may have during the course of Chagas disease remains poorly characterized. In this context, our study was designed to determine the expression of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), a neuropeptide with anti-inflammatory properties, in blood from the indeterminate and cardiac polarized forms of Chagas disease. Moreover, we determined whether the differential expression of VIP is associated with the development of cardiomyopathy in individuals infected with Trypanosoma cruzi. Finally, we analyzed gene polymorphisms of VIP receptors, VPAC1 and VPAC2, and performed correlation analysis of these polymorphisms with the different clinical forms of Chagas disease. Our results demonstrated that low plasma levels of VIP were associated with the cardiac morbidity in Chagas disease. Accordingly, correlation analysis showed that low plasma levels of VIP were associated with worse cardiac function, as determined by left ventricular ejection fraction and left ventricular diastolic diameter values. Polymorphism analysis showed a significant association between VPAC1 and the indeterminate form of Chagas disease development. Our data indicate that VIP expression and its receptors' polymorphism may be important in determining susceptibility to progression from mild to severe forms of Chagas disease.
