Seroprevalence of Toxocara Infection in Children from Southern Brazil
The seroprevalence of Toxocara canis antibodies in children aged from 1 to 12 yr old was evaluated in Pelotas City, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Human toxocariasis or visceral larva migrans (VLM) was diagnosed with the use of an ELISA based on the T. canis excretory–secretory (TES) antigens; Western blotting was used to confirm the ELISA-positive results. From 427 samples, 50.6% were positive for the presence of anti-TES antibodies. A confirmatory test (Western blot) was carried out on a sample of the ELISA-positive sera (n = 70), and all were positive. The Western blots had specific banding pattern characteristics, where the 30-kDa fraction demonstrated the highest reactivity. This fraction could be important for the specific diagnosis of toxocariasis.Abstract:
Representative banding profile of the T. canis excretory–secretory antigens in the Western blot assay, with the use of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) –positive sera. ELISA-positive sera (lines 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11); ELISA-positive sera preadsorbed with AgSoAl (lines 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12); positive control (lines 13 and 14); and negative control (lines 15 and 16) unabsorbed and preadsorbed with AgSoAl, respectively.
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