Development of an immunochromatographic device to detect antibodies for rapid diagnosis of human angiostrongyliasis.

Cerebral angiostrongyliasis is a central nervous system disease caused by Angiostrongylus cantonensis and can produce eosinophilic meningitis or meningoencephalitis in humans. Sero-immunological techniques, such as the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoblotting, are most commonly used for the diagnosis of human angiostrongyliasis. However, diagnosis in remote areas remains problematic because sophisticated equipment and specialized skills are required. To overcome, we have developed the immunochromatographic test (ICT) kit for rapid serological diagnosis of angiostrongyliasis through the detection of anti-A. cantonensis-specific antibodies in human serum. A recombinant A. cantonensis galectin-2 (rAcGal2) from young adult female worms was used as an antigen for the ICT kit development. Diagnostic values were evaluated and compared using the ELISA. The sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values of the ICT kit were 87.0, 96.5, 94.6 and 91.4%, respectively, and those of the ELISA were 91.0, 97.2, 95.8 and 94.0%, respectively. The concordance of the ICT kit was 93.9%. We, thus, determined that the ICT kit is sensitive and specific and provides reliable diagnostic results. It is rapid and simple to perform and can be utilized for both point-of-care diagnosis in the bedside laboratory and epidemiological surveys in endemic regions where access to diagnostic equipment is limited.