Journal article
The Iron Distribution and Magnetic Properties of Schistosome Eggshells: Implications for Improved Diagnostics
S Karl, L Gutiérrez, R Lucyk-Maurer, R Kerr, RRF Candido, SQ Toh, M Saunders, JA Shaw, A Suvorova, A Hofmann, MJ House, RC Woodward, C Graeff-Teixera, TG St. Pierre, MK Jones
Plos Neglected Tropical Diseases | PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE | Published : 2013
Open access
Abstract
Background:Schistosoma mansoni and Schistosoma japonicum are the most frequent causative agents of human intestinal schistosomiasis. Approximately 200 million people in the world are infected with schistosomes. Diagnosis of schistosomiasis is often difficult. High percentages of low level infections are missed in routine fecal smear analysis and current diagnostic methodologies are inadequate to monitor the progress of parasite control, especially in areas with low transmission. Improved diagnostic methods are urgently needed to evaluate the success of elimination programs. Recently, a magnetic fractionation method for isolation of parasite eggs from feces was described, which uses magnetic ..
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Awarded by Australian Research Council
Funding Acknowledgements
This work was funded by grants from the Australian Research Council (ARC, DP1093471), the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC, APP1002898), a University of Western Australia/University of Queensland Bilateral Research Collaboration Award, as well as grants from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq, 301979/2010-3) and the Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul (FAPERGS, 09/0096-7) in Brazil. Travel to Australia by RLM and RRFC was funded by Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES, 032/2010) and FAPERGS (12/1137-8 APE) grants awarded to CGT. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.