VALIDATE Seminar: Use Cases for Immunodiagnostic Tests for Leprosy

About the Seminar

Leprosy remains a public health problem in several low- and middle-income countries. Effective treatment is available but due to waning expertise, delayed- or misdiagnosis frequently occurs, leading to irreversible nerve damage. Thus, early diagnosis is vital. However, there is a lack of proper diagnostic tools. On top of this, the spectral presentation of leprosy, determined by host immunity to M. leprae after infection, complicates diagnosis as it ranges from paucibacillary (PB) to multibacillary (MB) disease which have distinct biomarkers. This presentation will discuss the identification of host biomarkers for leprosy types across the spectrum and their application in immunodiagnostic test for different use cases in leprosy health care, including vaccines.

About the Speaker

Annemieke Geluk is the Head of the Immunodiagnostics for Mycobacterial Diseases Research Group Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) in the Netherlands.  Her research focuses on Immunodiagnostics of Leprosy and Tuberculosis including basic-, translational-, applied- as well as field research based on immunological, molecular biological, chemical and epidemiological approaches. The investigations into these two infectious diseases evolve around: Global Health, Population Health, and One Health.