{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,28]],"date-time":"2025-09-28T04:40:11Z","timestamp":1759034411764,"version":"3.44.0"},"reference-count":32,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]],"date-time":"2025-09-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1758844800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100011880","name":"Belgian University Cooperation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["PRD2013"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["PRD2013"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100011880","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000200","name":"United States Agency for International Development","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000200","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"name":"UK FCDO from the British people (UK FCDO) through the Coalition for Operational Research on Neglected Tropical Diseases"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.mdpi.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Life"],"abstract":"<jats:p>A shift in the public health goal for onchocerciasis from control to elimination implies that the treatment of onchocerciasis must be extended to communities that are hypoendemic for the disease. However, in such communities, the majority of the population may not manifest the symptoms of onchocerciasis. As a result, they may be reluctant to take part in epidemiological surveys aimed at monitoring parasite transmission, particularly due to the invasive nature of the currently approved diagnostic tests. This reluctance is compounded by the absence of visible, severe manifestations of the disease in these areas. On the other hand, diagnostic methods that utilize samples collected by a non-invasive procedure, such as urine, are generally painless and not risky. In this context, we evaluated the diagnostic performances of OvMANE1 and OvMCBL02 multiepitope antigens using urine samples. The evaluation of total IgG and IgG subclass responses revealed IgG3 as the most effective IgG for the OvMANE1 test (sensitivity = 87.5%, specificity = 100.0%), total IgG for the OvMCBL02 test (sensitivity = 92.5%, specificity = 100.0%), and IgG3 for the OvMANE1_OvMCBL02 cocktail test (sensitivity = 92.5%, specificity = 100.0%). These tests have the potential to meet the criteria of a diagnostic test\u2019s target product profile to map onchocerciasis in low-prevalence areas, where a sensitivity of \u226560.0% and specificity of \u226599.8% are recommended. Furthermore, the OvMCBL02 and OvMANE1_OvMCBL02 cocktail tests may have the features of a diagnostic test\u2019s target product profile to determine treatment endpoints (recommended sensitivity \u2265 89.0%, specificity \u2265 99.8%) as reported by the Diagnostics Technical Advisory Group for Neglected Tropical Diseases of the World Health Organization. Consequently, further characterization of these multiepitope antigens may enable urine, which can be collected non-invasively, to be used in the OvMANE1 and OvMCBL02 tests for the field evaluation of onchocerciasis.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/life15101515","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]],"date-time":"2025-09-26T09:35:49Z","timestamp":1758879349000},"page":"1515","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Preliminary Evaluation of the Diagnostic Performance of OvMANE1 and OvMCBL02 Multiepitope Antigens for the Non-Invasive Diagnosis of Onchocerciasis Exposure"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6200-5841","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Bernis Neneyoh","family":"Yengo","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, Drexel University, 2900 W Queen Ln, Philadelphia, PA 19129, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0182-8662","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Cabirou Mounchili","family":"Shintouo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, Drexel University, 2900 W Queen Ln, Philadelphia, PA 19129, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0146-3894","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Robert Adamu","family":"Shey","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Buea, Buea P.O. Box 63, Cameroon"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ntang Emmaculate","family":"Yaah","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Buea, Buea P.O. Box 63, Cameroon"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Luc","family":"Vanhamme","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Biology, Institute of Biology and Molecular Medicine, IBMM, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Gosselies Campus, 12, 6040 Gosselies, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8853-6031","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rose","family":"Njemini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Gerontology, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Laarbeeklaan 103, 1090 Brussels, Belgium"},{"name":"Frailty & Resilience in Ageing Research Unit, Vitality Research Group, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Laarbeeklaan 103, 1090 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1526-4431","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jacob","family":"Souopgui","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Biology, Institute of Biology and Molecular Medicine, IBMM, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Gosselies Campus, 12, 6040 Gosselies, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3459-6554","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Stephen Mbigha","family":"Ghogomu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Buea, Buea P.O. Box 63, Cameroon"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"World Health Organization (2025, April 25). Onchocerciasis Key Facts. Geneva. Available online: https:\/\/www.who.int\/news-room\/fact-sheets\/detail\/onchocerciasis#:~:text=Key%20facts,the%20parasitic%20worm%20Onchocerca%20volvulus.&text=Symptoms%20include%20severe%20itching%2C%20disfiguring,live%20in%2031%20African%20countries."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Shintouo, C.M., Shey, R.A., Mets, T., Vanhamme, L., Souopgui, J., Ghogomu, S.M., and Njemini, R. (2021). Onchocerciasis Fingerprints in the Geriatric Population: Does Host Immunity Play a Role?. Trop. Med. Infect. Dis., 6.","DOI":"10.3390\/tropicalmed6030153"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Casulli, A. (2021). New global targets for NTDs in the WHO roadmap 2021\u20132030. PLoS Negl. Trop. 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