Method for Malaria Diagnosis Based on Extractions of Samples Using Non-Invasive Techniques: An Opportunity for the Nursing Clinical Practice

Adela Gómez-Luque, Juan Carlos Parejo, Maria Zoraida Clavijo-Chamorro, Fidel López-Espuela, Faustin Munyaruguru, Silvia Belinchón Lorenzo, Isabel Monroy and Luis Carlos Gómez-Nieto
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Adela Gómez-Luque: Department of Nursing, Nursing and Occupational Therapy College, University of Extremadura s/n, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Juan Carlos Parejo: Unidad de Genética, Facultad de Veterinaria, University of Extremadura s/n, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Maria Zoraida Clavijo-Chamorro: Department of Nursing, Nursing and Occupational Therapy College, University of Extremadura s/n, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Fidel López-Espuela: Department of Nursing, Nursing and Occupational Therapy College, University of Extremadura s/n, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Faustin Munyaruguru: Nemba Hospital, BP.15 Ruhengeri, 2055 Rwanda, Africa
Silvia Belinchón Lorenzo: Laboratorio LeishmanCeres, Unidad de Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, University of Extremadura s/n, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Isabel Monroy: Laboratorio LeishmanCeres, Unidad de Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, University of Extremadura s/n, 10003 Cáceres, Spain
Luis Carlos Gómez-Nieto: Laboratorio LeishmanCeres, Unidad de Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, University of Extremadura s/n, 10003 Cáceres, Spain

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 15, 1-10

Abstract: Malaria has been for millennia one of the best known and most destructive diseases affecting humans. Its high impact has aroused great interest for the development of new effective and reliable diagnostic techniques. Recently it has been recently published that hairs from mammal hosts are able to capture, hold and finally remove foreign DNA sequences of Leishmania parasites. The aim of this study was to check if Plasmodium falciparum ( P. falciparum ) DNA remains stable in blood samples deposited in Whatman paper after suffering different transport and storage conditions, and to compare the sensitivity of these results with those offered by thick a smear and Rapid Diagnostic Test, and besides to examine whether P. falciparum DNA would be detected and quantified by Real time quantitative PCR (qPCR) from hairs of people with different types of malaria. P. falciparum Histidine Repeat Protein II (pHRP-II) antigen detection and P. falciparum DNA were detected in 18 of 19 dry blood samples adhered to Whatman paper (94.74%), besides, Plasmodium DNA was also detected in seven out of 19 hair samples analyzed (36.84%), remaining stable until analysis for several months under the exposure to different environmental conditions. Although the sensitivity of PCR for the diagnosis of malaria in hair samples is not as high as blood analysis, the study of Plasmodium DNA presence in blood and hair could constitute a complementary tool with numerous advantages in sample collection, transport and storage. We suggest that the method could be also applied to medical, forensic and paleo-parasitological diagnosis, not only for malaria but also for searching many other pathogens in hair samples.

Keywords: malaria; Plasmodium falciparum; DNA; blood specimen collection; noninvasive techniques (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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