Clinical And Therapeutic Studies Of Human Filariasis and Related Diseases

为了更好地了解丝虫病(丝虫病、血吸虫病、淋巴丝虫病)的发病机制，对这些和其他相关非丝虫病(线虫病、疟疾)患者的临床评估进行了详细研究。还通过在疟疾(马里)、结核病(印度)和艾滋病毒(印度)共同流行的世界丝虫病流行地区进行临床试验，研究了丝虫病感染对非丝虫病临床表现的影响。 了解嗜酸性粒细胞相关疾病的发病机制一直是我们临床相关研究的主要焦点。临床上对多组高嗜酸性粒细胞增多症患者(寄生虫感染、家族性高嗜酸性粒细胞增多、特发性高嗜酸性粒细胞综合征、良性高嗜酸性粒细胞增多、发作性血管水肿伴嗜酸性粒细胞增多)进行了临床评估；此外，对淋巴细胞(及其亚群)和嗜酸性粒细胞进行了功能和分子水平的检测(人体微阵列和RT-PCR)，以确定与血液和组织嗜酸性粒细胞增加以及组织嗜酸性粒细胞引起的纤维化相关的分子和途径。 已经开发并利用新的诊断方法来快速和特异地诊断弓形虫病、血吸虫病和盘尾丝虫病。

To understand better the pathogenesis of filarial infections (onchocerciasis, loiaisis, lymphatic filarasis) clinical assessments of patients with these and other related non-filarial (strongyloides, malaria) infections have been studied in detail. The influence that filarial infections have on the clinical expression of non-filarial infectious diseases have also been studied by performing clinical trials in filarial-endemic regions of the world that are co-endemic for malaria (Mali), tuberculosis (India) and HIV (India). Understanding of the pathogenesis of eosinophil-related disorders has been a major focus of our clinically related studies. Multiple groups of hypereosinophilic patients (parasite-infected, familial hypereosinophilia, idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome, benign hypereosinophilia, episodic angioedema with eosinophilia) have been assessed clinically; moreover, lymphocytes (and their subsets) and eosinophils have been examined functionally and at the molecular level (human microarrays and RT-PCR) to identify the molecules and pathways involved in conditions associated with increased blood and tissue eosinophilia as well the fibrosis that the tissue eosinophilia induces. New diagnostic approaches have been developed and utilized for the rapid and specific diagnosis of Strongyloidiasis, loiasis, and onchocerciasis.