January 2012

Schistosome parasites are the causative agents of schistosomiasis, a global disease affecting more than 200 million people worldwide. Free-swimming infectious cercariae exit a freshwater snail to find a mammalian host, and upon penetration of host skin, lose their tail, transform into schistosomula (seen in the image), and mature into adult worms. In Milligan and Jolly, the Mef2 protein, a conserved schistosome transcriptional activator, is identified and described, and may have potential as a drug target to treat schistosome infection.

Image Credit: John N. Milligan (Case Western Reserve University)

Editorial

Control Using Genetically Modified Insects Poses Problems for Regulators

Michael J. Lehane, Serap Aksoy

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001495

Viewpoints

Scientific Standards and the Regulation of Genetically Modified Insects

R. Guy Reeves, Jai A. Denton, Fiammetta Santucci, Jarosław Bryk, Floyd A. Reed

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001502

Expert Commentaries

Appropriate Regulation of GM Insects

Luke Alphey, Camilla Beech

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001496

Science, Regulation, and Precedent for Genetically Modified Insects

John D. Mumford

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001504

Research Articles

Comparative Study of rK39 Leishmania Antigen for Serodiagnosis of Visceral Leishmaniasis: Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis

Zuinara Maia, Monique Lírio, Sóstenes Mistro, Carlos Maurício Cardeal Mendes, Sanjay R. Mehta, Roberto Badaro

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001484

Melioidosis Vaccines: A Systematic Review and Appraisal of the Potential to Exploit Biodefense Vaccines for Public Health Purposes

Sharon J. Peacock, Direk Limmathurotsakul, Yoel Lubell, Gavin C. K. W. Koh, Lisa J. White, Nicholas P. J. Day, Richard W. Titball

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001488

Silent Circulation of St. Louis Encephalitis Virus Prior to an Encephalitis Outbreak in Cordoba, Argentina (2005)

Luis Adrian Díaz, Guillermo Albrieu Llinás, Ana Vázquez, Antonio Tenorio, Marta Silvia Contigiani

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001489

High-Resolution Genotyping of the Endemic Salmonella Typhi Population during a Vi (Typhoid) Vaccination Trial in Kolkata

Kathryn E. Holt, Shanta Dutta, Byomkesh Manna, Sujit K. Bhattacharya, Barnali Bhaduri, Derek J. Pickard, R. Leon Ochiai, Mohammad Ali, John D. Clemens, Gordon Dougan

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001490

Cognitive Changes and Quality of Life in Neurocysticercosis: A Longitudinal Study

Mitchell T. Wallin, E. Javier Pretell, Javier A. Bustos, Marianella Caballero, Mercedes Alfaro, Robert Kane, Jeffrey Wilken, Cynthia Sullivan, Timothy Fratto, Hector H. Garcia

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001493

WormAssay: A Novel Computer Application for Whole-Plate Motion-based Screening of Macroscopic Parasites

Chris Marcellino, Jiri Gut, K. C. Lim, Rahul Singh, James McKerrow, Judy Sakanari

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001494

Using Molecular Data for Epidemiological Inference: Assessing the Prevalence of Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense in Tsetse in Serengeti, Tanzania

Harriet K. Auty, Kim Picozzi, Imna Malele, Steve J. Torr, Sarah Cleaveland, Sue Welburn

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001501

Detection of Mycobacterium ulcerans in the Environment Predicts Prevalence of Buruli Ulcer in Benin

Heather R. Williamson, Mark E. Benbow, Lindsay P. Campbell, Christian R. Johnson, Ghislain Sopoh, Yves Barogui, Richard W. Merritt, Pamela L. C. Small

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 31, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001506

Climate Teleconnections and Recent Patterns of Human and Animal Disease Outbreaks

Assaf Anyamba, Kenneth J. Linthicum, Jennifer L. Small, Kathrine M. Collins, Compton J. Tucker, Edwin W. Pak, Seth C. Britch, James Ronald Eastman, Jorge E. Pinzon, Kevin L. Russell

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 24, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001465

Impact of Continuous Axenic Cultivation in Leishmania infantum Virulence

Diana Moreira, Nuno Santarém, Inês Loureiro, Joana Tavares, Ana Marta Silva, Ana Marina Amorim, Ali Ouaissi, Anabela Cordeiro-da-Silva, Ricardo Silvestre

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 24, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001469

Whole Genome Sequences of Three Treponema pallidum ssp. pertenue Strains: Yaws and Syphilis Treponemes Differ in Less than 0.2% of the Genome Sequence

Darina Čejková, Marie Zobaníková, Lei Chen, Petra Pospíšilová, Michal Strouhal, Xiang Qin, Lenka Mikalová, Steven J. Norris, Donna M. Muzny, Richard A. Gibbs, Lucinda L. Fulton, Erica Sodergren, George M. Weinstock, David Šmajs

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 24, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001471

A “Genome-to-Lead” Approach for Insecticide Discovery: Pharmacological Characterization and Screening of Aedes aegypti D₁-like Dopamine Receptors

Jason M. Meyer, Karin F. K. Ejendal, Larisa V. Avramova, Elisabeth E. Garland-Kuntz, Gloria I. Giraldo-Calderón, Tarsis F. Brust, Val J. Watts, Catherine A. Hill

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 24, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001478

The Impact of Neurocysticercosis in California: A Review of Hospitalized Cases

Curtis Croker, Matthew Redelings, Roshan Reporter, Frank Sorvillo, Laurene Mascola, Patricia Wilkins

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 24, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001480

Clinical and Virological Study of Dengue Cases and the Members of Their Households: The Multinational DENFRAME Project

Philippe Dussart, Laurence Baril, Laure Petit, Lydie Beniguel, Luong Chan Quang, Sowath Ly, Raimunda do Socorro Silva Azevedo, Jean-Baptiste Meynard, Sirenda Vong, Loïc Chartier, Aba Diop, Ong Sivuth, Veasna Duong, Cao Minh Thang, Michael Jacobs, Anavaj Sakuntabhai, Marcio Roberto Teixeira Nunes, Vu Ti Que Huong, Philippe Buchy, Pedro Fernando da Costa Vasconcelos

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 24, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001482

Identification of Proteins in Promastigote and Amastigote-like Leishmania Using an Immunoproteomic Approach

Vinicio T. S. Coelho, Jamil S. Oliveira, Diogo G. Valadares, Miguel A. Chávez-Fumagalli, Mariana C. Duarte, Paula S. Lage, Manuel Soto, Marcelo M. Santoro, Carlos A. P. Tavares, Ana Paula Fernandes, Eduardo A. F. Coelho

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 17, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001430

A Semantic Problem Solving Environment for Integrative Parasite Research: Identification of Intervention Targets for Trypanosoma cruzi

Priti P. Parikh, Todd A. Minning, Vinh Nguyen, Sarasi Lalithsena, Amir H. Asiaee, Satya S. Sahoo, Prashant Doshi, Rick Tarleton, Amit P. Sheth

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 17, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001458

Genetic Polymorphisms and Drug Susceptibility in Four Isolates of Leishmania tropica Obtained from Canadian Soldiers Returning from Afghanistan

Marie Plourde, Adriano Coelho, Yoav Keynan, Oscar E. Larios, Momar Ndao, Annie Ruest, Gaétan Roy, Ethan Rubinstein, Marc Ouellette

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 17, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001463

Should I Get Screened for Sleeping Sickness? A Qualitative Study in Kasai Province, Democratic Republic of Congo

Alain Mpanya, David Hendrickx, Mimy Vuna, Albert Kanyinda, Crispin Lumbala, Valéry Tshilombo, Patrick Mitashi, Oscar Luboya, Victor Kande, Marleen Boelaert, Pierre Lefèvre, Pascal Lutumba

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 17, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001467

Successful Outcomes with Oral Fluoroquinolones Combined with Rifampicin in the Treatment of Mycobacterium ulcerans: An Observational Cohort Study

Daniel P. O'Brien, Anthony McDonald, Peter Callan, Mike Robson, N. Deborah Friedman, Andrew Hughes, Ian Holten, Aaron Walton, Eugene Athan

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 17, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001473

A Multicenter Evaluation of Diagnostic Tools to Define Endpoints for Programs to Eliminate Bancroftian Filariasis

Katherine Gass, Madsen V. E. Beau de Rochars, Daniel Boakye, Mark Bradley, Peter U. Fischer, John Gyapong, Makoto Itoh, Nese Ituaso-Conway, Hayley Joseph, Dominique Kyelem, Sandra J. Laney, Anne-Marie Legrand, Tilaka S. Liyanage, Wayne Melrose, Khalfan Mohammed, Nils Pilotte, Eric A. Ottesen, Catherine Plichart, Kapa Ramaiah, Ramakrishna U. Rao, Jeffrey Talbot, Gary J. Weil, Steven A. Williams, Kimberly Y. Won, Patrick Lammie

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 17, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001479

Diagnostic Accuracy of Molecular Amplification Tests for Human African Trypanosomiasis—Systematic Review

Claire M. Mugasa, Emily R. Adams, Kimberly R. Boer, Heleen C. Dyserinck, Philippe Büscher, Henk D. H. F. Schallig, Mariska M. G. Leeflang

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 10, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001438

Early Diagnosis, Treatment and Follow-Up of Cystic Echinococcosis in Remote Rural Areas in Patagonia: Impact of Ultrasound Training of Non-Specialists

Mario Del Carpio, Carlos Hugo Mercapide, Juan Carlos Salvitti, Leonardo Uchiumi, José Sustercic, Hector Panomarenko, Jorge Moguilensky, Eduardo Herrero, Gabriel Talmon, Marcela Volpe, Daniel Araya, Guillermo Mujica, Arnoldo Calabro, Sergio Mancini, Carlos Chiosso, Jose Luis Labanchi, Ricardo Saad, Sam Goblirsch, Enrico Brunetti, Edmundo Larrieu

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 10, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001444

A Systematically Improved High Quality Genome and Transcriptome of the Human Blood Fluke Schistosoma mansoni

Anna V. Protasio, Isheng J. Tsai, Anne Babbage, Sarah Nichol, Martin Hunt, Martin A. Aslett, Nishadi De Silva, Giles S. Velarde, Tim J. C. Anderson, Richard C. Clark, Claire Davidson, Gary P. Dillon, Nancy E. Holroyd, Philip T. LoVerde, Christine Lloyd, Jacquelline McQuillan, Guilherme Oliveira, Thomas D. Otto, Sophia J. Parker-Manuel, Michael A. Quail, R. Alan Wilson, Adhemar Zerlotini, David W. Dunne, Matthew Berriman

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 10, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001455

Sero-Epidemiology as a Tool to Screen Populations for Exposure to Mycobacterium ulcerans

Dorothy Yeboah-Manu, Katharina Röltgen, William Opare, Kobina Asan-Ampah, Kwabena Quenin-Fosu, Adwoa Asante-Poku, Edwin Ampadu, Janet Fyfe, Kwadwo Koram, Collins Ahorlu, Gerd Pluschke

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 10, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001460

Orientia tsutsugamushi in Human Scrub Typhus Eschars Shows Tropism for Dendritic Cells and Monocytes Rather than Endothelium

Daniel H. Paris, Rattanaphone Phetsouvanh, Ampai Tanganuchitcharnchai, Margaret Jones, Kemajittra Jenjaroen, Manivanh Vongsouvath, David P. J. Ferguson, Stuart D. Blacksell, Paul N. Newton, Nicholas P. J. Day, Gareth D. H. Turner

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 10, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001466

A Field Trial of Alternative Targeted Screening Strategies for Chagas Disease in Arequipa, Peru

Gabrielle C. Hunter, Katty Borrini-Mayorí, Jenny Ancca Juárez, Ricardo Castillo Neyra, Manuela R. Verastegui, Fernando S. Malaga Chavez, Juan Geny Cornejo del Carpio, Eleazar Córdova Benzaquen, César Náquira, Robert H. Gilman, Caryn Bern, Michael Z. Levy

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 10, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001468

Low Efficacy of Single-Dose Albendazole and Mebendazole against Hookworm and Effect on Concomitant Helminth Infection in Lao PDR

Phonepasong Ayé Soukhathammavong, Somphou Sayasone, Khampheng Phongluxa, Vilavanh Xayaseng, Jürg Utzinger, Penelope Vounatsou, Christoph Hatz, Kongsap Akkhavong, Jennifer Keiser, Peter Odermatt

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 3, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001417

Management and Outcome of Cardiac and Endovascular Cystic Echinococcosis

Marta Díaz-Menéndez, José Antonio Pérez-Molina, Francesca Florence Norman, Ana Pérez-Ayala, Begoña Monge-Maillo, Pilar Zamarrón Fuertes, Rogelio López-Vélez

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 3, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001437

Identification and Characterization of a Mef2 Transcriptional Activator in Schistosome Parasites

John N. Milligan, Emmitt R. Jolly

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 3, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001443

Analysis of Epitopes on Dengue Virus Envelope Protein Recognized by Monoclonal Antibodies and Polyclonal Human Sera by a High Throughput Assay

Hong-En Lin, Wen-Yang Tsai, I-Ju Liu, Pi-Chun Li, Mei-Ying Liao, Jih-Jin Tsai, Yi-Chieh Wu, Chih-Yun Lai, Chih-Hsuan Lu, Jyh-Hsiung Huang, Gwong-Jen Chang, Han-Chung Wu, Wei-Kung Wang

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 3, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001447

Validation of a New Test for Schistosoma haematobium Based on Detection of Dra1 DNA Fragments in Urine: Evaluation through Latent Class Analysis

Olufunmilola Ibironke, Artemis Koukounari, Samuel Asaolu, Irini Moustaki, Clive Shiff

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: published January 3, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001464

Cover

Schistosomula of Schistosoma mansoni feeding on red blood cells.

Editorial

Related Articles

Viewpoints

Related Articles

Expert Commentaries

Related Articles

Related Articles

Research Articles

Related Articles

**Schistosomula of Schistosoma mansoni feeding on red blood cells.**