title: Evaluation of the Leishmania recombinant K39 antigen as a diagnostic marker for canine leishmaniasis and validation of a standardized enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
abstract: Canine infections with Leishmania infantum are important as a cause of serious disease in the dog and as a reservoir for human visceral leishmaniasis (VL). Accurate diagnosis of canine infections is essential to the veterinary community and for VL surveillance programs. A standardized ELISA using a purified recombinant antigen (rK39) specific to VL was compared to the immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT) as the standard. The ELISA was developed, optimized and evaluated using sera from 6368 dogs. The standardized ELISA and IFAT results were highly concordant. The timing and pattern of ELISA and IFAT seroconversion in dogs followed prospectively after natural infections were very similar. Antibodies reacting with rK39 were more common in asymptomatic canine infections than reported for subclinical human VL. The rK39 ELISA is a relatively simple and rapid assay for assessing the infection status of dogs, and is an alternative to IFAT, especially when screening large numbers of samples.
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio di Parassitologia, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Scalone
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: De Luna
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Oliva
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Baldi
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Satta
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vesco
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Mignone
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Turilli
authors.forename: R R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Mondesire
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Simpson
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Donoghue
authors.forename: G R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Frank
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gradoni
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000469:parasitology; D004285:Dogs; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect / Q000662:veterinary; D018314:Leishmania infantum / Q000276:immunology*; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000097:blood*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000097:blood; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C079253:K39 antigen, Leishmania