EINLEITUNG

The alphaWell Leishmania IgG ELISA is intended for the qualitative determination of IgG-class antibodies against Leishmania infantum in human serum or plasma.

Leishmania is the causative agent of leishmanioses. The many species of the genus Leishmania pathogenic to humans do not show morphological differences. They can be differentiated on the basis of biological criteria, laboratory analyzes the different clinical pictures and epidemiological facts (see tab.).

Leishmania are transmitted by female mosquitoes of the genera Phlebotomus and Lutzomyia („sandflies“), that occur in warmer regions of countries in Asia, Africa, Europe (Mediterranean countries) and Latin America. The amastigote stages of the parasite ingested by the insect with a blood meal are transformed in its intestine into slender, flagellate promastigote forms, which multiply and migrate back into the proboscis. When infected sandflies take another bloodmeal the promastigote forms are inoculated into a new host (humans or other vertebrates).

In the host the promastigotes quickly (within 12-14 hours) transform into amastigote stages, which then released in a process resembling exocytosis and can infect new cells. In cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmanioses the parasites generally remain restricted to the skin or skin and mucosa. Cutaneous leishmanioses lesions may persist for long periods, but tend to heal spontaneously, whereas a greater tendency to destructive changes is seen in mucocutaneous leishmanioses infections. By contrast in visceral leishmanioses the organism can invade the entire mononuclear phagocytic system in various organs (spleen, liver, lymph, nodes, bone marrow, blood monocytes etc.), causing infections that are normally lethal without treatment.

Infections may be diagnosed by

• Microscopy: Determination of the pathogen in coloured Giemsa-stained smears
• Serology: Determination of specific antibodies based on the ELISA-technique

ANTIGENE

Purified Leishmania antigens

SPEZIFISCHE LEISTUNGSMERKMALE

HANDELSFORM