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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
medicine
Quantitative detection of Plasmodium falciparum DNA in saliva, blood, and urine
Journal of Infectious Diseases, Volume 199, No. 11, Year 2009
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Description
Background. Current methods for detecting malaria parasites are invasive and associated with poor compliance when repeated sampling is required. New methods to detect and quantify parasites in a less-invasive manner would greatly enhance the potential for longitudinal surveillance in clinical trials. Methods. Saliva, urine, and blood samples from 386 Gambian outpatients with suspected malaria infections were analyzed by nested polymerase chain reaction (nPCR) to detect infection and to evaluate diagnostic accuracy in comparison to expert microscopy. The amount of parasite DNA in malaria-positive samples was estimated using real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR). Results. Blood parasite density as estimated by qPCR correlated well with parasite counts established by microscopy (p = 0.94; P < .001). qPCR results for saliva hada significant correlation with microscopy counts (p = 0.58; P < .001), whereas qPCR results for urine had a positive but poor correlation with microscopy counts (p = 0.20; P = .117). The mean amounts of parasite DNA quantified in blood were greater than the mean amounts quantified in saliva and urine samples obtained concurrently from the same individual, by ∼600-fold and ∼2500-fold, respectively. When nPCR results were compared with microscopy results, nPCR of saliva had a sensitivity of 73% and a specificity of 97%; its sensitivity increased to 82% in samples with a parasite density of ≥1000 parasites/μl. nPCR of urine had a sensitivity of 32% and a specificity of 98%. Conclusion. Saliva sampling is a promising less-invasive approach for detecting malaria infection. © 2009 by the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved.
Authors & Co-Authors
Nwakanma, Davis C.
Gambia, Banjul
Medical Research Council Laboratories Gambia
Gomez-Escobar, Natalia
Gambia, Banjul
Medical Research Council Laboratories Gambia
Walther, Michael
Gambia, Banjul
Medical Research Council Laboratories Gambia
Crozier, Sarah R.
Gambia, Banjul
Medical Research Council Laboratories Gambia
United Kingdom, Southampton
University of Southampton
United States, Gaithersburg
Medlmmune
Dubovsky, Filip
United States, Bethesda
Program for Appropriate Technology in Health Malaria Vaccine Initiative
United Kingdom, Southampton
University of Southampton
United States, Gaithersburg
Medlmmune
Malkin, Elissa M.
United States, Bethesda
Program for Appropriate Technology in Health Malaria Vaccine Initiative
Locke, Emily
United States, Bethesda
Program for Appropriate Technology in Health Malaria Vaccine Initiative
Conway, David J.
Gambia, Banjul
Medical Research Council Laboratories Gambia
Statistics
Citations: 107
Authors: 8
Affiliations: 4
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1086/598856
ISSN:
00221899
Research Areas
Genetics And Genomics
Infectious Diseases
Study Design
Cohort Study
Study Approach
Quantitative