Detection of Circulating antibodies against Schistosoma bovis by a Micro-Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay in Experimentally infected West African Dwarf Goats

Abstract

A micro-enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (micro-ELISA) was found to detect circulating antibodies against Schistosoma bovis in all 10 infected goats as from the fourth week post infection, while the modified filtration-ninhydrin staining method could detect Schistosoma bovis eggs in 7 out of 10 infected goats six weeks after infection. However, the micro-ELISA test was unable to differentiate between the moderate and high intensity of the infection in the respective groups. All of the 104 sera collected at different intervals from the 13 goats during the experimental period could easily be tested in one day it took 14 days for the same number of faecal samples to be examined for Schistosoma bovis eggs by the modified filtration-ninhydrin staining method. Thus the micro-ELISA test may be a useful seroepidemiological test as an alternative to quantitative parasitological method in epidemiology of ruminant Schistosomiasis. It can be refined to such a point that it can detect and differentiate infection intensity and stage of infection