5 November 2012 | EN Scientists have developed a simple and
cheap urine test to detect filariasis. [COLOMBO] An
international team of researchers has developed a simple but
effective urine test to diagnose lymphatic filariasis, a
neglected parasitic disease that affects more than 120 million
people globally. The test is more affordable and less cumbersome
than existing diagnostic methods, scientists from Bangladesh,
Japan and Sri Lanka reported in Parasitology International, on
13 September. Lymphatic filariasis, also called elephantiasis,
is caused by the Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi and B.
timori species of the nematode that is spread by mosquito bites.
The worms settle in the lymph vessels, causing limbs to swell.
An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test to detect
filarial antigen in urine is available, but it requires
equipment that may not be available in endemic areas. Antigens –
including toxins, bacteria, and parasites – stimulate the
production of defensive antibodies by the body’s im