Background
Detection of circulating anodic antigen (CAA) is known for its high sensitivity in diagnosing schistosomiasis infection, even in low-prevalence settings. The Up-Converting Phosphor-Lateral Flow (UCP-LF) assay developed in 2008 presented greater sensitivity than other assay methods in use for CAA detection.
Aim
Our study aims to comprehensively review all studies conducted in this area and thus generate informed conclusions on the potential for adopting the UCP-LF assay for diagnosing this important yet neglected tropical disease.
Method
Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) guidelines, we generated search criteria to capture all studies in English journals available in the Scopus and PubMed databases on 20th December 2022.
Result
A total of 219 articles were identified, and 84 that met the inclusion criteria were retrieved and eventually included in the study. Twelve different assay methods were identified with a noteworthy transition from Enzyme Linked Immuno-Sorbent Assay (ELISA) to the UCP-LF assay, a laboratory-based assay that may be applicable as a point-of-care (POC) diagnostic test for schistosomiasis.
Recommendation
Reducing the time, cost and dependence on specialized laboratory skills and equipment, especially relating to the trichloroacetic acid (TCA) extraction step and centrifugation in the UCP-LF CAA assay may go a long way to aid its potential as a POC tool. We also propose the development of a CAA-specific aptamer (short protein/antigen binding oligonucleotide) as a possible alternative to monoclonal antibodies (mAb) in the assay.
Conclusion
UCP-LF has great potential for POC application.