title: Microbiologic methods utilized in the MAL-ED cohort study.
abstract: A central hypothesis of The Etiology, Risk Factors and Interactions of Enteric Infections and Malnutrition and the Consequences for Child Health and Development (MAL-ED) study is that enteropathogens contribute to growth faltering. To examine this question, the MAL-ED network of investigators set out to achieve 3 goals: (1) develop harmonized protocols to test for a diverse range of enteropathogens, (2) provide quality-assured and comparable results from 8 global sites, and (3) achieve maximum laboratory throughput and minimum cost. This paper describes the rationale for the microbiologic assays chosen and methodologies used to accomplish the 3 goals.
authors.affiliation: University of Virginia, Charlottesville.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Houpt
authors.affiliation: University of Virginia, Charlottesville.
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gratz
authors.affiliation: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kosek
authors.affiliation: Aga Khan University, Naushahro Feroze, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Anita K M
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Zaidi
authors.affiliation: Aga Khan University, Naushahro Feroze, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Shahida
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Qureshi
authors.affiliation: Christian Medical College, Vellore, India.
authors.forename: Gagandeep
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: Christian Medical College, Vellore, India.
authors.forename: Sudhir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Babji
authors.affiliation: Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mason
authors.affiliation: Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Ladaporn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bodhidatta
authors.affiliation: University of Venda, Thohoyandou, South Africa.
authors.forename: Amidou
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Samie
authors.affiliation: University of Venda, Thohoyandou, South Africa.
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bessong
authors.affiliation: University of Virginia, Charlottesville.
authors.forename: Leah
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Barrett
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal do Ceara, Fortaleza, Brazil.
authors.forename: Aldo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lima
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal do Ceara, Fortaleza, Brazil.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Havt
authors.affiliation: icddr,b, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
authors.forename: Rashidul
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Haque
authors.affiliation: icddr,b, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
authors.forename: Dinesh
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mondal
authors.affiliation: University of Virginia, Charlottesville.
authors.forename: Mami
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Taniuchi
authors.affiliation: University of Virginia, Charlottesville.
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Stroup
authors.affiliation: Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health.
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: McGrath
authors.affiliation: Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health Foundation of the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland.
authors.forename: Dennis
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lang
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D004756:Enterobacteriaceae Infections / Q000175:diagnosis; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D015340:Epidemiologic Research Design; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007410:Intestinal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D007411:Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / Q000175:diagnosis; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008828:Microbiological Techniques / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards*; D008853:Microscopy; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care
keywords: ELISA; PCR; culture; enteropathogen; microscopy