title: Polymerase chain reaction for detecting Onchocerca volvulus in pools of blackflies.
abstract: The detection of Onchocerca volvulus infected simuliids or blackflies is routinely done by dissection and microscopic examination of individual flies, but this method is tedious and time consuming. Here we describe a method of detecting single O. volvulus infected blackflies in pools of uninfected blackflies. Using a PCR with Onchocerca specific primers it is possible to reproducibly detect one heavily infected blackfly in a pool of 80 flies, or to detect one blackfly inoculated with one microfilaria in a pool of 20 flies. With the method described large numbers of blackflies can be rapidly screened for the presence of O. volvulus infected flies.
authors.affiliation: Royal Tropical Institute, Department of Biomedical Research, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Oskam
authors.forename: G J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Schoone
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Kroon
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lujan
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Davies
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D017181:Onchocerca volvulus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D009855:Onchocerciasis / Q000175:diagnosis*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012843:Simuliidae / Q000469:parasitology*