THE ENDEMIC NORMAL IN LYMPHATIC FILARIASIS - A STATIC CONCEPT

Residents of areas endemic for lymphatic filariasis are continually exposed to infection with mosquito-transmitted infective larvae (L3), some of which survive to become adult worms and subsequently produce microfilarial (mf) transmission stages. The question of whether naturally acquired resistance occurs in adult residents of endemic areas has recently become of interest as the development of molecular vaccines against filarial parasites is being considered1,2. There have been two epidemiological approaches to demonstrate acquired resistance to filariasis in human populations. In this review Karen Day examines both approaches in the context of an immunoepidemiological study of bancroftian filariasis in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The merits of each as a conceptual framework for studies of protective immunity in lymphatic filariasis will be discussed.