ANTIGENS FROM PIG CYSTICERCOSIS AND THEIR VALUABILITY IN DIAGNOSIS OF HUMAN CYSTICERCOSIS

Abstract

Human cysticercosis is a serious disease caused by Cysticercus cellulose (C.c.); the larval stage ofTaenia solium. The disease affects pigs and pork meat consuming people. Cysticercosis was diagnosedin pigs during post-mortum (P.M.) inspection while specific serologic one must be used for human diagnosisof cysticercosis. The present study evaluated the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of three antigens,extracted from living non-calcified C.c. larvae from naturally infected pig muscles, in diagnosisof infection by cysticercosis in human and pigs by using ELISA. The results showed that C.c. fluid Ag(C.c. Fl) proved to be the most sensitive one followed by C.c. scolices Ag (C.c. Scol)and then C.c. wallAg (C.c. Wl), with sensitivities of 85.55%, 74.44% & 67.77%, respectively. C.c. Fl-Ag gave the highsensitivity (73.33%) in diagnosis cysticercosis infection in suspected patients with perfect classificationfor Kapp agreement. Moreover, C.c. Fl-Ag showed high median ELISA optical density (OD) value, butwithout significant difference (P≥0.05) for OD values in diagnosis of infection in human or pig sera.Also, C.c.Fl-Ag gave the highest specificity 92.5%, in excluding cross reaction versus other human hepaticdiseases as schistosomiasis mansoni, Hepatitis C virus and hydatidosis as well as trichinosis spiralisAbs in infected pigs. The C.c.Fl-Ag contained the highest number (13) of specific immunogenicfractions by using EITB, which fractioned at the MW of 140, 135, 130, 105, 100, 95, 68, 58, 45, 35, 28,25 & 22 kDa. But, the fractionated C.c.Wl-Ag contained ten immunogenic fractions at MW of 100, 75,68, 63, 58, 45, 42, 35, 25 & 18 kDa, and the C.c. Scol-Ag contained nine fractions at MW of 135, 100,68, 66, 63, 58, 45, 42 & 35 kDa. Consequently, suitability of C.c.Fl-Ag antigen could be used for epidemiologicalstudy of zoonotic cysticercosis by using ELISA.