Katholi C R, Toé L, Merriweather A, Unnasch T R
Department of Biostatistics, University of Alabama at Birmingham 35294, USA.
J Infect Dis. 1995 Nov;172(5):1414-7. doi: 10.1093/infdis/172.5.1414.
An important variable in the epidemiology of arthropodborne diseases is the intensity of transmission, which is a function of host-vector contact and the prevalence of infection in the vector population. This latter value is often difficult to estimate. It is possible to envision the application of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays to this problem. To accomplish this, the assay must detect a single infected vector in a pool containing a large number of uninfected individuals. It must also be possible to calculate the prevalence of infection from the number of positive pools. A PCR assay for detecting Onchocerca volvulus in pools of vector black flies is described, and an algorithm is presented to calculate the prevalence of infection in the vector population, based upon the proportion of PCR-positive pools. This algorithm should be applicable to any disease for which a PCR assay is available.
虫媒疾病流行病学中的一个重要变量是传播强度，它是宿主与媒介接触以及媒介种群中感染率的函数。后一个值通常很难估计。可以设想将聚合酶链反应（PCR）检测应用于这个问题。要做到这一点，检测方法必须能够在含有大量未感染个体的样本中检测出单个感染媒介。还必须能够根据阳性样本的数量计算感染率。本文描述了一种用于检测媒介黑蝇样本中盘尾丝虫的PCR检测方法，并提出了一种算法，根据PCR阳性样本的比例计算媒介种群中的感染率。该算法应适用于任何有PCR检测方法的疾病。
