THE DIRECT AGGLUTINATION-TEST - A NONSPECIFIC TEST SPECIFIC FOR THE DIAGNOSIS OF VISCERAL LEISHMANIASIS

Serology has an important role to play in the diagnosis of the severe clinical syndrome of visceral leishmaniasis (VL). The direct agglutina tion test (DAT), a simple agglutination test which requires no laborat ory facilities, has become the preferred test, particularly for field studies. The nature of the antigens responsible for the agglutination of leishmanial promastigotes by the serum of VL patients is not known. A series of experiments which provide some clues to the molecular bas is for the test and which indicate that there might be more in DAT tha n meets the eye is reported.