Improved serological testing for bovine schistosomiasis in Eastern Africa.
| Title: | Improved serological testing for bovine schistosomiasis in Eastern Africa. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Tóth V; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK.; Gasan TA; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK.; Crooks B; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK.; Nzalawahe J; Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania.; Juhász A; Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, L3 5QA, UK.; Institute of Medical Microbiology, Semmelweis University, Budapest, 1089, Hungary.; LaCourse JE; Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, L3 5QA, UK.; Stothard JR; Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, L3 5QA, UK.; Ame SM; Public Health Laboratory, Ivo de Carneri, Pemba, United Republic of Tanzania.; Department of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK.; Hu W; National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Centre for Tropical Diseases Research), National Health Commission Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, WHO Collaborating Centre for Tropical Diseases, National Centre for International Research on Tropical Diseases, Shanghai, China.; The Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China.; Gobert GN; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK. G.Gobert@qub.ac.uk. |
| Source: | Parasites & vectors [Parasit Vectors] 2026 Mar 23; Vol. 19 (1). Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Mar 23. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 101462774 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1756-3305 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 17563305 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Parasit Vectors Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: London : BioMed Central |
| MeSH Terms: | Cattle Diseases*/diagnosis ; Cattle Diseases*/parasitology ; Serologic Tests*/methods ; Serologic Tests*/veterinary ; Schistosomiasis*/veterinary ; Schistosomiasis*/diagnosis ; Schistosomiasis*/parasitology ; Antibodies, Helminth*/blood ; Schistosoma*/immunology ; Schistosoma*/isolation & purification; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/methods ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/veterinary ; Africa, Eastern/epidemiology ; Antigens, Helminth/immunology ; Animals ; Cattle ; Sensitivity and Specificity |
| Abstract: | Background: In East Africa, bovine schistosomiasis, although common, is poorly appreciated and managed, detrimentally impacting upon livestock health. In certain settings, bovine schistosomiasis may be involved in zoonotic transmission of human schistosomiasis. Better disease management and more effective control of bovine schistosomiasis require the development of sensitive and specific serological screening and rapid diagnostic tools.; Methods: We developed an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for Schistosoma bovis detection in cattle, utilizing nine shortlisted potential diagnostic protein targets. These shortlisted candidates, STI, IPP, OP, PGK1, COG, PDZ, and Sbp80 (as three fragments), were identified from Schistosoma japonicum homologs already reported with the highest diagnostic potential. In S. bovis, these proteins participate in various biological processes, including metabolic pathways, transcriptional regulation, glycolysis, phosphorylation, and cell signalling, although their real diagnostic potential has not been explored until now.; Results: The ELISA was optimized using bovine blood serum samples from regions in Tanzania and validated for sensitivity and specificity. Two targets of specific focus, Conserved Oligomerix Golgi complex subunit 4 (COG) and a domain of the cysteine protease calpain (Sbp80), achieved the highest specificity and sensitivity among the recombinant proteins, with 92% and 88% sensitivity and 100% and 80% specificity, respectively. We further evaluated the COG-based and calpain-based ELISA on further "real-world" bovine serum samples from abattoir sites in Zanzibar, detecting S. bovis in 59.1% of tested animals.; Conclusions: Both COG and calpain are promising candidates for serological screening and later inclusion in portable diagnostic tests for S. bovis infection in cattle. Such future diagnostic assays will enable better point-of-detection monitoring, and once scalable, aid in the control of disease in cattle.; (© 2026. The Author(s).) |
| Competing Interests: | Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: All protocols and procedures for handling animals and sample collection were approved by the Ethical Committee of the Directorate of Research, Consultancy and Technology Transfer of the Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests. |
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| Grant Information: | FF\1920\1\10 Royal Academy of Engineering, UK |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Schistosoma; Schistosoma bovis; Africa; Bovine; Cattle; Diagnostic; ELISA; One Health; Schistosomiasis; Serum |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 0 (Antibodies, Helminth); 0 (Antigens, Helminth) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260324 Date Completed: 20260430 Latest Revision: 20260502 |
| Update Code: | 20260502 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC13130579 |
| DOI: | 10.1186/s13071-026-07332-1 |
| PMID: | 41872927 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
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