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Article
Open AccessAnimated documentation of the filaria dance sign (FDS) in bancroftian filariasis
Ultrasonography is able to detect adult Wuchereria bancrofti worms in scrotal lymphatic vessels of infected men on account of the characteristic pattern of adult worm movements, known as the filarial dance sign. ...
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Article
Open AccessEvidence against Wolbachia symbiosis in Loa loa
The majority of filarial nematode species are host to Wolbachia bacterial endosymbionts, although a few including Acanthocheilonema viteae, Onchocerca flexuosa and Setaria equina have been shown to be free of inf...
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Article
Open AccessFrequent detection of worm movements in onchocercal nodules by ultrasonography
Ultrasonography (USG) is known to be a suitable tool for diagnosis in lymphatic filariasis as the adult filarial nematode Wuchereria bancrofti in scrotal lymphatic vessels of infected men can be detected by the c...
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Article
Open AccessAssessment of microfilarial loads in the skin of onchocerciasis patients after treatment with different regimens of doxycycline plus ivermectin
Infection with the filarial nematode Onchocerca volvulus can lead to severe dermatitis, visual impairment, and ultimately blindness. Since the currently used drug, ivermectin does not have macrofilaricidal or str...
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Article
Open AccessOnchocerciasis Control: Vision for the Future from a Ghanian perspective
Since 1987 onchocerciasis control has relied on the donation of ivermectin (Mectizan®, Merck & Co., Inc.) through the Mectizan Donation Programme. Recently, concern has been raised over the appearance of suboptim...
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Article
Open AccessCommunity-directed delivery of doxycycline for the treatment of onchocerciasis in areas of co-endemicity with loiasis in Cameroon
Severe side effects following ivermectin treatment of onchocerciasis in areas of co-endemicity with loaisis have been an impediment for the work of the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC) in fo...
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Article
Open AccessRetarded Onchocerca volvulus L1 to L3 larval development in the Simulium damnosum vector after anti-wolbachial treatment of the human host
The human parasite Onchocerca volvulus harbours Wolbachia endosymbionts essential for worm embryogenesis, larval development and adult survival. In this study, the development of Wolbachia-depleted microfilariae ...
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Article
Open AccessThe human parasite Loa loa in cytokine and cytokine receptor gene knock out BALB/c mice: survival, development and localization
Immunological mechanisms involved in the survival and development of human filarial species in the vertebrate host are poorly known due to the lack of suitable experimental models. In order to understand the r...
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Article
Open AccessReal-time PCR detection of the HhaI tandem DNA repeat in pre- and post-patent Brugia malayi infections: a study in Indonesian transmigrants
Lymphatic filariasis caused by Wuchereria bancrofti or Brugia spp. is a public health problem in develo** countries. To monitor bancroftian filariasis infections, Circulating Filarial Antigen (CFA) test is comm...
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Article
Open AccessExtracellular Onchocerca-derived small RNAs in host nodules and blood
microRNAs (miRNAs), a class of short, non-coding RNA can be found in a highly stable, cell-free form in mammalian body fluids. Specific miRNAs are secreted by parasitic nematodes in exosomes and have been dete...
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Article
Open AccessReductions in microfilaridermia by repeated ivermectin treatment are associated with lower Plasmodium-specific Th17 immune responses in Onchocerca volvulus-infected individuals
37 million individuals are currently infected with Onchocerca volvulus (O. volvulus), a parasitic nematode that elicits various dermal manifestations and eye damage in man. Disease control is primarily based on d...
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Article
Open AccessDevelo** a community-led SMS reporting tool for the rapid assessment of lymphatic filariasis morbidity burden: case studies from Malawi and Ghana
Lymphoedema and hydrocoele are the two most common clinical manifestations of lymphatic filariasis (LF). In order to effectively target morbidity management strategies, more information is rapidly needed on mo...
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Article
Open AccessDevelopment of patent Litomosoides sigmodontis infections in semi-susceptible C57BL/6 mice in the absence of adaptive immune responses
One of the most advantageous research aspects of the murine model of filariasis, Litomosoides sigmodontis, is the availability of mouse strains with varying susceptibility to the nematode infection. In C57BL/6 mi...
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Article
Open AccessUpdate on the distribution of Mansonella perstans in the southern part of Cameroon: influence of ecological factors and mass drug administration with ivermectin
Mansonellosis remains one of the most neglected of tropical diseases and its current distribution in the entire forest block of southern Cameroon is unknown. In order to address this issue, we have surveyed th...
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Article
Open AccessEpidemiology of Mansonella perstans in the middle belt of Ghana
Mansonellosis was first reported in Ghana by Awadzi in the 1990s. Co-infections of Mansonella perstans have also been reported in a small cohort of patients with Buruli ulcer and their contacts. However, no study...
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Open AccessSuccessful long-term maintenance of Mansonella perstans in an in vitro culture system
Approximately 114 million people are infected with Mansonella perstans in large proportions of Africa. In contrast to other filariae that infect humans, M. perstans-infected individuals show no distinct pathology...
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Article
Open AccessEffect of flubendazole on develo** stages of Loa loa in vitro and in vivo: a new approach for screening filaricidal agents
Loiasis, an often-neglected tropical disease, is a threat to the success of lymphatic filariasis and onchocerciasis elimination programmes in rainforest areas of the central and western Africa. Its control and...
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Open AccessUpdate on the biology and ecology of Culicoides species in the South-West region of Cameroon with implications on the transmission of Mansonella perstans
Culicoides (Diptera; Ceratoponidae) are tiny, stout, blood-sucking flies with a near worldwide distribution. When present, they are often considered a biting nuisance but in addition, they are involved in the tra...
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Article
Open AccessSusceptibility to L. sigmodontis infection is highest in animals lacking IL-4R/IL-5 compared to single knockouts of IL-4R, IL-5 or eosinophils
Mice are susceptible to infections with the rodent filarial nematode Litomosoides sigmodontis and develop immune responses that resemble those of human filarial infections. Thus, the L. sigmodontis model is used ...
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Article
Open AccessComparison of immune responses to Loa loa stage-specific antigen extracts in Loa loa-exposed BALB/c mice upon clearance of infection
Different immune mechanisms are capable of killing developmental stages of filarial nematodes and these mechanisms are also likely to vary between the primary and a challenge infection. However, the lack of a ...