Partially purified fraction (PPF) antigen from adult Fasciola gigantica for the serodiagnosis of human fascioliasis using Dot-ELISA technique

Background: Human fascioliasis has been reported in many countries, including Iran. Various techniques have been evaluated for diagnosis of human fascioliasis using different antigens. We evaluated Fasciola gigantica partially purified fraction antigen (PPF) isolated from sheep's liver fluke for the diagnosis of human fascioliasis. Materials and Methods: Two hundred sixty-one sera were collected from 104 patients living in an area endemic for human fascioliasis, from 89 non-fascioliasis patients living in a non-endemic area, and from 68 healthy individuals. Micro-ELISA was used in the evaluation of the sensitivity and specificity of Dot-ELISA. Results: With a 1:800 sera dilution as the cut-off titer the sensitivity of the Dot-ELISA test in diagnosis of human fascioliasis was 94.23% and the specificity was 99.36%. Conclusion: Dot-ELISA using PPF antigen is a sensitive and specific method for diagnosis of human fascioliasis that is also rapid and inexpensive.