Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU)

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Research Unit ◽  
Tropical Medicine ◽  
Medicine Research

scholarly journals Data sharing: experience from a tropical medicine research unit

The Lancet ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 390 (10103) ◽  
pp. 1642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phaik Yeong Cheah ◽  
Nicholas Philip John Day
Keyword(s):  
Data Sharing ◽  
Research Unit ◽  
Tropical Medicine ◽  
Medicine Research

scholarly journals Diagnostic accuracy of an in-house Scrub Typhus enzyme linked immunoassay for the detection of IgM and IgG antibodies in Laos

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (12) ◽  
pp. e0008858
Author(s):  
Philip N. D. Elders ◽  
Sandhya Dhawan ◽  
Ampai Tanganuchitcharnchai ◽  
Koukeo Phommasone ◽  
Vilada Chansamouth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Diagnostic Accuracy ◽  
Sensitivity And Specificity ◽  
Scrub Typhus ◽  
Lao Pdr ◽  
Research Unit ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Igg Antibodies ◽  
Medicine Research ◽  
Gold Standard Reference

Scrub typhus is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Southeast Asia. Diagnosis of scrub typhus is difficult due to a lack of accessible validated diagnostic tools. Despite its objectivity, the diagnostic accuracy of ELISA tests is influenced by methodological and patient factors. This study aims to evaluate the performance of a novel in-house ELISA developed in the Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU) for anti-scrub typhus group IgM and IgG compared to the “gold standard” reference IFA and PCR, and to determine whether the in-house ELISA can be used as a seroepidemiological screening tool and/or stand-alone test for scrub typhus. A total of 1,976 admission and 1,438 participant follow-up sera collected in the Lao PDR (Laos) were tested with ELISA for IgM and IgG. Samples with an ELISA OD≥0.50 were tested with IFA for IgM and/or IgG. A strong positive relationship was present between ELISA ODs and IFA titers for admission IgM (r2: 0.70, p <0.005) and IgG (r2: 0.76, p<0.005), and for follow-up IgM and IgG (both r2: 0.76, p<0.005) samples. The best compromise between sensitivity and specificity for the ELISA OD cut-off is likely to be between 0.8–1.0 for IgM antibodies and 1.2–1.8 for IgG antibodies. These results demonstrate that the diagnostic accuracy of the MORU in-house scrub typhus group ELISA is comparable to that of IFA, with similar results as reported for the commonly used InBios Scrub Typhus Detect ELISA, validating the use of the in-house ELISA. The optimal ELISA cut-off would depend on the use of the test, and the desired sensitivity and specificity. Further studies are required to authenticate the use of these cut-offs in other endemic regions. This in-house ELISA has the potential to replace the imperfect IFA, which could ultimately reduce the burden of scrub typhus by improving the rate of scrub typhus diagnoses in endemic low-resource areas.

scholarly journals History of the E.I. Martsinovsky Institute of Medical Parasitology and Tropical Medicine: research on malaria and leishmaniasis

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 1097-1124
Author(s):  
Margarita V. Strelkova ◽  
Alla M. Baranova ◽  
Katrin Kuhls
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Medicine ◽  
Medical Community ◽  
Medicine Research ◽  
History Of ◽  
Extensive Body ◽  
The Impact

Abstract This review presents the 100-year history of the Martsinovsky Institute of Medical Parasitology and Tropical Medicine in Moscow, Russia, starting with its foundation and early activities, and also describes the impact of its leading scientists, some of whom became internationally known. The institute headed a network of nine tropical institutes in the various Soviet republics from the 1920s to 1990. The extensive body of literature on the history and research accomplishments of this institute has mainly been published in Russian; our goal here is to introduce these achievements and this expertise to the international scientific and medical community, focusing on malaria and leishmaniasis and the development of measures to control and monitor these diseases in the USSR.

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