Resumo

ESPINOZA, A.; ROJAS, E.  e  SCORZA, J. V. Intradermic reaction to a monovalent anti-gen of Leishmania (Viannia) brasiliensis in cases of cutanaeous leishmaniasis in the state of Trujillo, Venezuela.. Rev. Soc. Ven. Microbiol. [online]. 2002, vol.22, n.2, pp.174-181. ISSN 1315-2556.

Abstract In the state of Trujillo, Venezuela, tegumentary leishmaniasis is an endemic disease. Currently, there exists an incidence of 120 to 130 new cases per year, originating in different sectors of the community of 493,000 inhabitants and affecting all social groups. A tool used in its diagnosis is the "leishmanina", or Montenegro test, which makes evident the exposure to the parasite which causes the disease, the protozoos of the genus Leishmania, sub-genus Viannia, which can generate different responses in the patient, before treatment with prepared anti-genes, such as those which form the base of leishmanina. We propose to revise the technique used in the diagnosis of Leishmaniasis by means of intra-dermatological-reaction (IDR) and to standardize the preparation and application technique of an anti-gene made from local types of Leishmania sp. The taking of samples from effected individuals of the city, attending the Treatment Center of the Parasitological Research Centre, ´´Jose Witremundo Torrealba´´, facilitated the isolation of the parasites, their identification and their use in the preparation of the anti-gene. The latter was tested on the population of an endemic region, comparing its characteristics with those of other similar anti-genes, in order to evaluate its quality and the process of its reaction. We found that the concentration of anti-gene, which induced a stable response, was 40ug/ml of protein for a trial period of 48 hours. A local monovalent anti-gene (L. viannia brasiliensis) induced a better response than another polyvalent anti-gene (L. brasiensis brasiliensis and L. brasiliensis guyanensis) in order to produce a hyper-reaction resistant to allergic tests. The Duncan Test confirmed the validity of these results. The widespread utilization of anti-genes as a valuable epidemiological tool makes the employment of standardized anti-genes necessary and we, consequently, offer our anti-gene for large-scale field trials.

Palavras-chave : leishmania (Viannia) brasiliensis; leishmaniasis cutánea; antígeno monovalente.