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The detection of infectious disease-causing organisms is important for the initiation of effective treatment, in monitoring response to therapy and in epidemiological studies of disease of human or animal hosts. In this article Stuart Wilson primarily considers parasitic diseases, but much can be applied to infectious diseases in general.
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Genetically defined, live attenuated Salmonella vaccines are proving useful both as oral vaccines against salmonellosis and for the development of multivalent vaccines based on the expression of heterologous antigens in such strains. Several candidate attenuated S. typhi strains are at present being evaluated as new single dose oral typhoid vaccines in human volunteers. The emergence of such a vaccine will facilitate the development of multivalent vaccines for humans. Many antigens from different infectious organisms have been expressed in attenuated Salmonella. A focus of this work has been on developing vaccines against parasitic diseases. This review will summarize the efforts that have been made in this area.
Protein farnesylation is a form of posttranslational modification that occurs in most, if not all, eukaryotic cells. Inhibitors of protein farnesyltransferase (PFTIs) have been developed as anticancer chemotherapeutic agents. Using the knowledge gained from the development of PFTIs for the treatment of cancer, researchers are currently investigating the use of PFTIs for the treatment of eukaryotic pathogens. This "piggy-back" approach not only accelerates the development of a chemotherapeutic agent for protozoan pathogens but is also a means of mitigating the costs associated with de novo drug design. PFTIs have already been shown to be efficacious in the treatment of eukaryotic pathogens in animal models, including both Trypanosoma brucei, the causative agent of African sleeping sickness, and Plasmodium falciparum, one of the causative agents of malaria. Here, current evidence and progress are summarized that support the targeting of protein farnesyltransferase for the treatment of parasitic diseases.
Number of theses published and the major evaluation indicators of the (Chinese Journal of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases) in 2000-2004 were analyzed. Together 833 papers and communications were published in the 5 years and the original articles, reviews and experiment reports occupied 39.4%, 9.1% and 4.4% respectively. The key authors were from universities (53.4%) and disease control institutions (29.4%). 20 universities/institutions published over 8 papers in the period occupying 38.1%. The average rate of papers supported by various funds and by international agencies was 0.50 and 0.09 respectively, and higher in 2004, 0.52 and 0.07 respectively. The ratio of national, ministry (provincial) and international projects was 29.9%, 43.9% and 20.4% respectively. The overall citation and impact factor of this journal increased from 325 and 0.377 in 2000 to 437 and 0.462 in 2004 respectively, being among the best of the periodicals and expressing its high academic level and its domestic and abroad importance in the field of parasitology.
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The oriental eyeworm, Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida, Thelaziidae), infects a range of definitive hosts, such as dogs, cats, foxes, rabbits, and humans. This parasite usually lives under the nictitating membrane of the eye, where the adult females release first-stage larvae into the lachrymal secretions; these larvae are subsequently ingested by the intermediate arthropod host within which they develop to the infective, third-stage larvae. The latter larvae are then deposited into the eyes of the definitive host. Recently, T. callipaeda has been reported to infect dogs, foxes, and/or cats in Europe (Italy, France, and Germany). Human thelaziosis (HT) is considered to be an underestimated parasitic disease, whose prevalence appears to have increased in poor socioeconomic settings in many Asian countries, including China. In humans, the disease can be subclinical or symptomatic, exhibiting epiphora, conjunctivitis, keratitis, excessive lachrymation, corneal opacity, and/or ulcers. Knowledge about HT is presently fragmentary and mainly limited to clinical case reports. This article provides a background on the parasite and its life cycle, reviews cases of human thelaziosis, summarizes key aspects regarding the diagnosis of thelaziosis, and proposes future research and methods of control of the disease in humans, particularly in Asia.
Epidemiology is concerned with the study of diseases and risk factors for diseases in populations. Livestock related studies require that the term disease is extended to cover all conditions that directly or indirectly may affect the economic, social and ecological value of livestock or constitute a public health risk. The objectives of epidemiologic studies range from the quantification of traits, e.g., prevalence of a disease in a population (descriptive approach), to the analysis of correlation between diseases and putative risk factors (analytic approach). The type of epidemiologic study must be selected accordingly. In this paper we present the most important types of epidemiologic studies using example data. Our aim is to give an orientation for the planning of epidemiologic studies.
Diseases caused by tropical parasites affect hundreds of millions of people worldwide but have been largely neglected for drug development because they affect poor people in poor regions of the world. Most of the current drugs used to treat these diseases are decades old and have many limitations, including the emergence of drug resistance. This review will summarize efforts to reinvigorate the drug development pipeline for these diseases, which is driven in large part by support from major philanthropies. The organisms responsible for these diseases have a fascinating biology, and many potential biochemical targets are now apparent. These neglected diseases present unique challenges to drug development that are being addressed by new consortia of scientists from academia and industry.
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