scispace - formally typeset
Search or ask a question
Author

Pedro Fernández-Soto

Bio: Pedro Fernández-Soto is an academic researcher from University of Salamanca. The author has contributed to research in topics: Schistosoma mansoni & Schistosomiasis. The author has an hindex of 18, co-authored 52 publications receiving 840 citations.


Papers
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A cost-effective, easy to perform, specific and sensitive LAMP assay for early detection of S. mansoni in stool samples is developed and potentially and readily adaptable for field diagnosis and disease surveillance in schistosomiasis-endemic areas.
Abstract: Background Human schistosomiasis, mainly due to Schistosoma mansoni species, is one of the most prevalent parasitic diseases worldwide. To overcome the drawbacks of classical parasitological and serological methods in detecting S. mansoni infections, especially in acute stage of the disease, development of cost-effective, simple and rapid molecular methods is still needed for the diagnosis of schistosomiasis. A promising approach is the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technology. Compared to PCR-based assays, LAMP has the advantages of reaction simplicity, rapidity, specificity, cost-effectiveness and higher amplification efficiency. Additionally, as results can be inspected by the naked eye, the technique has great potential for use in low-income countries.

83 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Rickettsia aeschlimannii in Spain: molecular evidence in Hyalomma marginatum and five other tick species that feed on humans is found.
Abstract: Suggested citation for this article: Fernandez-Soto P, Encinas-Grandes A, Perez-Sanchez R. Rickettsia aeschlimannii in Spain: molecular evidence in Hyalomma marginatum and five other tick species that feed on humans. Emerg Infect Dis [serial online] 2003 Jul [date cited]. Available from: URL: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol9no7/03-0077.htm

56 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Real-time PCR is an effective tool for diagnosing strongyloidiasis and could be applied in association with parasitological methods in epidemiological studies in endemic areas and in immunocompromised populations who are at risk of fatal disease.

54 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Twenty unfed larvae of Neotrombicula autumnalis collected on vegetation in the north of Spain were examined by polymerase chain reaction for Borrelia burgdorferi, rickettsiae, and the Ehrlichia phagocytophila genogroup and 10% of the larvae were found to contain granulocytic ehrlichiae.
Abstract: Twenty unfed larvae of Neotrombicula autumnalis (Acari: Trombiculidae) collected on vegetation in the north of Spain were examined by polymerase chain reaction for Borrelia burgdorferi (s.l.), rickettsiae, and the Ehrlichia phagocytophila genogroup. At least 10% of the larvae were found to contain granulocytic ehrlichiae. Because the larvae were unfed, they would necessarily have inherited the bacteria through a transovarian transmission pathway.

50 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An important improvement is developed for SmMIT-LAMP molecular assay, transforming it into a cold maintenance dry format suitable for potentially manufacturing as kit for ready-to-use for schistosomiasis diagnosis, and could be applied to create dry LAMP kits for a laboratory setting and for diagnostic applications for other neglected tropical diseases.
Abstract: Schistosomiasis is one of the most prevalent Neglected Tropical Disease, affecting approximately 250 million people worldwide. Schistosoma mansoni is the most important species causing human intestinal schistosomiasis. Despite significant efforts in recent decades, the global disease burden of schistosomiasis remains extremely high. This could partly be attributed to the absence of accurate diagnostic tools, primarily in endemic areas. Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is increasingly used in molecular diagnostics as a field-friendly alternative to many other complex molecular methods and it has been proposed as an ideal candidate for revolutionizing point-of-care molecular diagnostics. In a previous work, a LAMP-based method to detect S. mansoni DNA (SmMIT-LAMP) was developed by our research group for early diagnosis of active schistosomiasis in an experimental infection murine model. The SmMIT-LAMP has been further successfully evaluated in both human stool and snail samples and, recently, in human urine samples. In this study, we developed an important improvement for SmMIT-LAMP molecular assay, transforming it into a cold maintenance dry format suitable for potentially manufacturing as kit for ready-to-use for schistosomiasis diagnosis. This procedure could be applied to create dry LAMP kits for a laboratory setting and for diagnostic applications for other neglected tropical diseases.

43 citations


Cited by
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The current knowledge on tick-borne rickettsiae and ricksettsioses is presented using a geographic approach toward the epidemiology of these diseases.
Abstract: Tick-borne rickettsioses are caused by obligate intracellular bacteria belonging to the spotted fever group of the genus Rickettsia. These zoonoses are among the oldest known vector-borne diseases. However, in the past 25 years, the scope and importance of the recognized tick-associated rickettsial pathogens have increased dramatically, making this complex of diseases an ideal paradigm for the understanding of emerging and reemerging infections. Several species of tick-borne rickettsiae that were considered nonpathogenic for decades are now associated with human infections, and novel Rickettsia species of undetermined pathogenicity continue to be detected in or isolated from ticks around the world. This remarkable expansion of information has been driven largely by the use of molecular techniques that have facilitated the identification of novel and previously recognized rickettsiae in ticks. New approaches, such as swabbing of eschars to obtain material to be tested by PCR, have emerged in recent years and have played a role in describing emerging tick-borne rickettsioses. Here, we present the current knowledge on tick-borne rickettsiae and rickettsioses using a geographic approach toward the epidemiology of these diseases.

1,016 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The tick-borne rickettsioses described through 2005 are presented and the epidemiological circumstances that have played a role in the emergence of the newly recognized diseases are focused on.
Abstract: During most of the 20th century, the epidemiology of tick-borne rickettsioses could be summarized as the occurrence of a single pathogenic rickettsia on each continent. An element of this paradigm suggested that the many other characterized and noncharacterized rickettsiae isolated from ticks were not pathogenic to humans. In this context, it was considered that relatively few tick-borne rickettsiae caused human disease. This concept was modified extensively from 1984 through 2005 by the identification of at least 11 additional rickettsial species or subspecies that cause tick-borne rickettsioses around the world. Of these agents, seven were initially isolated from ticks, often years or decades before a definitive association with human disease was established. We present here the tick-borne rickettsioses described through 2005 and focus on the epidemiological circumstances that have played a role in the emergence of the newly recognized diseases.

989 citations

01 Jan 1995
TL;DR: This review focuses on the various biochemical aspects of the interactions between the selectins and their cognate carbohydrate ligands, with an emphasis on the importance of these adhesive events to the inflammatory response.
Abstract: The orderly migration of various white blood cell types to inflammatory sites is a highly regulated process that involves a diversity of adhesion and signaling molecules. This cellular influx is initiated by relatively low affinity interactions that allow for leukocytes to roll along the vascular surfa ce. This rolling phe­ nomenon is mediated by adhesive interactions between lectin containing ad­ hesion molecules, termed selectins, on both the vascular endothelium and leukocytes, and car bohydrate ligands immobilized on mucin-like scaffolds. This adhesion allows for a rapid recognition of various cell types under the conditions of vascular flow, with the result that inflammatory cells are spe­

482 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The brown dog tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus) is the most widespread tick in the world and a well-recognized vector of many pathogens affecting dogs and occasionally humans, including the possible impact of current climate changes on populations of this tick around the world.
Abstract: The brown dog tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus) is the most widespread tick in the world and a well-recognized vector of many pathogens affecting dogs and occasionally humans. This tick can be found on dogs living in both urban and rural areas, being highly adapted to live within human dwellings and being active throughout the year not only in tropical and subtropical regions, but also in some temperate areas. Depending on factors such as climate and host availability, Rh. sanguineus can complete up to four generations per year. Recent studies have demonstrated that ticks exposed to high temperatures attach and feed on humans and rabbits more rapidly. This observation suggests that the risk of human parasitism by Rh. sanguineus could increase in areas experiencing warmer and/or longer summers, consequently increasing the risk of transmission of zoonotic agents (e.g., Rickettsia conorii and Rickettsia rickettsii). In the present article, some aspects of the biology and ecology of Rh. sanguineus ticks are discussed including the possible impact of current climate changes on populations of this tick around the world.

469 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Understanding the ecology of ticks and their associations with hosts in a European urbanized environment is crucial to quantify parameters necessary for risk pre-assessment and identification of public health strategies for control and prevention of tick-borne diseases.
Abstract: Tick-borne diseases represent major public and animal health issues worldwide. Ixodes ricinus, primarily associated with deciduous and mixed forests, is the principal vector of causative agents of viral, bacterial, and protozoan zoonotic diseases in Europe. Recently, abundant tick populations have been observed in European urban green areas, which are of public health relevance due to the exposure of humans and domesticated animals to potentially infected ticks. In urban habitats, small and medium-sized mammals, birds, companion animals (dogs and cats), and larger mammals (roe deer and wild boar) play a role in maintenance of tick populations and as reservoirs of tick-borne pathogens. Presence of ticks infected with tick-borne encephalitis virus and high prevalence of ticks infected with Borrelia burgdorferi s.l., causing Lyme borreliosis, have been reported from urbanized areas in Europe. Emerging pathogens, including bacteria of the order Rickettsiales (Anaplasma phagocytophilum, "Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis," Rickettsia helvetica, and R. monacensis), Borrelia miyamotoi, and protozoans (Babesia divergens, B. venatorum, and B. microti) have also been detected in urban tick populations. Understanding the ecology of ticks and their associations with hosts in a European urbanized environment is crucial to quantify parameters necessary for risk pre-assessment and identification of public health strategies for control and prevention of tick-borne diseases.

388 citations