Ascaris lumbricoides IgG ELISA

Ascaridae are big nematodes. The male individuals are up to 25 cm, the female ones are up to 40 cm long. Ascaris lumbricoides is among the Ascaridae the species with the highest importance for human medicine, because it is the only one with humans as main host. The sexually mature roundworm lives in the small intestine. The females produce up to 200 000 eggs daily, which attain to the environment by faeces. Infectious larvae develop inside the eggs and after oral ingestion they hatch in the upper part of the small intestine. They penetrate the wall of the intestine and get into the venous blood with which they get into liver and lung, where they leave the vessels and skin in the aveoles. The larvae migrate into the trachea and through the pharynx after swallowing back to the small intestine where the maturation to the adult worm takes place. Ca. 10-12 weeks after infestation the roundworms will be excreted with faeces. The adult worm lives for around 18 months. Ascaris lumbricoides is one of the most abundant exciter of Infectious Diseases worldwide. Main endemic areas are Eastern Asia, Africa and Middle and South America. Children are more often affected than adults. The infestation leads to Ascariasis mostly with latent progression. The migrating larvae can lead to inflammatory, eosinophile infiltration of the lung and cause cough, dyspnoea and light fever. Conglomerates of the worms can cause intestinal blockage. If the worms migrate into gall, pancreas or stomach the corresponding clinical symptoms result. The presence of an infection may be identified by:

• Microscopy: Detection of eggs in faeces
• Serology: Detection of antibodies by ELISA