In nearly all of the previous multicentre studies evaluating serological tests for Trypanosoma cruzi infection, sera samples from Central or South American countries have been used preferentially. In this work we compared the reliability of the serological tests using Mexican sera samples that were evaluated in four independent laboratories. This included a reference laboratory in Brazil and th...

A dipstick assay for the detection of brucella-specific immunoglobulin M antibodies was evaluated with 707 sera from 247 laboratory-confirmed brucellosis patients and 342 control sera from brucellosis-free individuals. These sera were collected from six different countries. The assay was found to be highly sensitive and specific. In addition, the test is easy to use and does not require special...

A novel antigen preparation--the synthetic C6 peptide, a conserved portion of the variable VlsE antigens of Borrelia burgdorferi--has been evaluated for serodiagnosis of Lyme borreliosis (LB) by an ELISA procedure. Serum specimens were from early and late LB patients, all resident in an endemic area in north-eastern Italy. The specificity of the test approached the 100% and sensitivity was in t...

BACKGROUND The inefficiency of the current tachyzoite antigen-based serological assays for the serodiagnosis of Toxoplasma gondii infection mandates the need for acquirement of reliable and standard diagnostic reagents. Recently, epitope-based antigens have emerged as an alternative diagnostic marker for the achievement of highly sensitive and specific capture antigens. In this study, the diagn...

Glanders is a contagious disease caused by the Gram-negative bacillus Burkholderia mallei. The number of equine glanders outbreaks has increased steadily during the last decade. The disease must be reported to the Office International des Epizooties, Paris, France. Glanders serodiagnosis is hampered by the considerable number of false positives and negatives of the internationally prescribed te...

BACKGROUND The early and correct diagnosis of human leishmaniasis is essential for disease treatment. Another important step in the control of visceral leishmaniasis is the identification of infected dogs, which are the main domestic reservoir of L. infantum. Recombinant proteins and synthetic peptides based on Leishmania genes have emerged as valuable targets for serodiagnosis due to their inc...

INTRODUCTION Serological tests' limitations in syphilis diagnosis as well as numerous test interpretations mean that patients with discordant serology results can present diagnostic and treatment challenges for clinicians. We analyzed three common diagnostic algorithms for detecting suspected syphilis in high-prevalence populations in Slovenia. METHODS The prospective study included a total o...

Background: Celiac disease is a common autoimmune disorder that is diagnosed based on clinical case identification, serological screening, and duodenal histology. However, the existence of mild clinical forms, such as seronegative cases with patchy atrophy and potential celiac disease, can make it difficult to determine a definitive diagnosis. The seronegative patients with celiac disease can i...