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Development and evaluation of a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) diagnostic test for detection of whipworm, Trichuris trichiura, in faecal samples
- M.G. Ngari, I.N. Mwangi, M.P. Njoroge, J. Kinyua, F.A. Osuna, B.M. Kimeu, P.W. Okanya, E.L. Agola
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- Journal:
- Journal of Helminthology / Volume 94 / 2020
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 02 April 2020, e142
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- Article
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Whipworm infection or trichuriasis caused by Trichuris trichiura is of major public health concern in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly among pre-school and school-going children. It is among the neglected tropical diseases targeted for elimination through mass drug administration (MDA). One of the outcomes of MDA is a rapid decline in levels of infection intensity, making it difficult to monitor effectiveness of control measures using the conventional Kato–Katz procedure, which relies on the microscopic detection of parasite ova in faecal samples. In the present study, a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) test was developed for the detection of T. trichiura infection in faecal samples. LAMP technology offers greater sensitivity and specificity than the microscopy-based tests. A set of four specific primers targeting the internal transcribed spacer 2 region of the ribosomal DNA were designed using Primer Explorer software. DNA was extracted from faecal samples using the alkaline lysis method (HotSHOT) and the LAMP reaction performed at 63°C for 1 h. The amplicons were visualized by both gel electrophoresis and with the naked eye following staining with SYBR green dye. Sensitivity and specificity tests were determined using the standard Kato–Katz diagnostic procedure as a reference test. The developed LAMP assay reliably detected T. trichiura DNA in faecal samples, with a specificity and sensitivity of 88% and 77%, respectively. No cross-reactivity was observed with several common helminth parasites. The developed LAMP assay is an appropriate diagnostic method for the detection of T. trichiura DNA in human faecal samples due to its simplicity, low cost, high sensitivity and specificity.
6 - Seasonality and long-term change in a savanna environment
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- By Susan C. Alberts, Department of Biology Duke University Box 90338 Durham NC 27708 USA; Institute for Primate Research National Museums of Kenya Nairobi Kenya, Julie A. Hollister-Smith, Department of Biology Duke University Box 90338 Durham NC 27708 USA, Raphael S. Mututua, Amboseli Baboon Research Project Amboseli National Park Kenya; Institute for Primate Research National Museums of Kenya Nairobi Kenya, Serah N. Sayialel, Amboseli Baboon Research Project Amboseli National Park Kenya; Institute for Primate Research National Museums of Kenya Nairobi Kenya, Philip M. Muruthi, African Wildlife Foundation Box 48177 Nairobi Kenya, J. Kinyua Warutere, Amboseli Baboon Research Project Amboseli National Park Kenya; Institute for Primate Research National Museums of Kenya Nairobi Kenya, Jeanne Altmann, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 USA; Department of Conservation Biology Brookfield Zoo Brookfield, IL USA; Institute for Primate Research National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
- Edited by Diane K. Brockman, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, Carel P. van Schaik, Universität Zürich
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- Book:
- Seasonality in Primates
- Published online:
- 10 August 2009
- Print publication:
- 17 November 2005, pp 157-196
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- Chapter
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Summary
Introduction
The emergence and spread of savannas in Africa during the past five million years is often cited as a major factor in hominid evolution. Tropical savannas are different from forests in having less rainfall, which is strongly seasonal and often very unpredictable, even within seasons (Bourliere & Hadley 1983; Solbrig 1996). Human ancestors are thought to have moved into savannas as a response to cooling and drying climates, and the exigencies of the savanna environment – including the marked seasonal changes in plant food availability – are often cited as key selective pressures shaping the hominid lineage (see reviews and references in Foley [1987, 1993], Potts [1998a, 1998b], Klein [1999], and Chapters 4, 5, and 17). This scenario invites a careful examination of responses to seasonality in extant savanna-dwelling primates.
Like most vertebrates, the large majority of primate species exhibit reproductive seasonality that reflects the seasonality of their habitats (see review in Chapter 11). Indeed, among savanna-dwelling primates, there are only two exceptions to the rule of seasonal reproduction: humans and baboons (genus Papio). This shared characteristic – the ability to reproduce throughout the year in seasonal environments – may be related to the extraordinary success of these two genera. While only humans (and their commensals) have spread across the globe, baboons have achieved a nearly continental distribution in Africa.