Cross-Reactivity Pattern of Asian and American Human Gnathostomiasis in Western Blot Assays Using Crude Antigens Prepared from Gnathostoma spinigerum and Gnathostoma binucleatum Third-Stage Larvae.
Gnathostomiasis is a zoonotic parasitosis endemic in many Asian and some Latin American countries. Most human infections are caused by Gnathostoma spinigerum in Asia and Gnathostoma binucleatum in the Americas, and recently, imported cases have been increasing among travelers returning from endemic regions. Confirmation of the clinical diagnosis relies largely on serologic tests, with a G. spinigerum-antigen-based immunoblot currently being the diagnostic method of choice. However, we repeatedly experienced that sera from patients with clinically suspected American gnathostomiasis gave negative results in this assay. Therefore, we used homologous methods to prepare G. spinigerum- and G. binucleatum-antigen-based immunoblot assays, and evaluated the cross-reactivity of the two assays. The results show incomplete cross-reactivity between the two assays: the G. spinigerum-antigen-based immunoblot apparently only detects Asian gnathostomiasis caused by G. spinigerum, whereas the G. binucleatum-antigen-based immunoblot is apparently capable of detecting American as well as Asian gnathostomiasis.
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland. University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland. andreas.neumayr@unibas.ch.
Andreas
A
Neumayr
Dermatopathology Section, Universidad Central del Ecuador, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Jose
J
Ollague
Instituto de Medicina Tropical Alexander von Humboldt, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru.
Francisco
F
Bravo
Instituto de Medicina Tropical Alexander von Humboldt, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru.
Eduardo
E
Gotuzzo
Research Department, Foundation for Marine Coastal Management and Research (FEMM), Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Pedro
P
Jimenez
Department of Dermatology, Children's National Medical Center, Washington, District of Columbia.
Scott A
SA
Norton
Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam.
Pham Ngoc
PN
Doanh
Research Division, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Yukifumi
Y
Nawa
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Miyazaki, Miyazaki, Japan.
Yoichiro
Y
Horii
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland. University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Beatrice
B
Nickel
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland. University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Hanspeter
H
Marti
D000818:Animals; D000909:Antibodies, Helminth / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D000947:Antigens, Helminth / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001208:Asia; D015153:Blotting, Western / Q000379:methods; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004524:Eels / Q000469:parasitology; D006039:Gnathostoma / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D058429:Gnathostomiasis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology; D006801:Humans; D007814:Larva / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000737:chemistry / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology*; D014481:United States
D000909:Antibodies, Helminth; D000947:Antigens, Helminth