Specimen bank
Some critical obstacles in the development of improved assays for human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), or sleeping sickness, include access not only to quality diagnostic and clinical data, but also to carefully collected and stored reference materials. Sustained field programs that have the capacity and facilities for long-term follow-up constitute another important challenge. Although a number of small, independent specimen collections from HAT patients already exist, most of them may have been collected under uncertain ethical conditions, taken from poorly characterized subjects, or stored in unstable conditions.
FIND and the Department of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) of the World Health Organization (WHO) have addressed these problems by establishing a HAT specimen bank, which is owned by the WHO. This has guaranteed more efficient use of limited resources, reduced the need for field trials, promoted product comparisons and facilitated quality control.
The specimen bank includes samples from:
- People who are asymptomatic but at risk of infection (screened populations in a HAT focus);
- HAT suspects who have not been confirmed parasitologically (positive screening test results but no evidence of parasites);
- Patients in whom disease has been confirmed; and
- Control subjects (negative screening test results and no evidence of parasites).
The samples are collected in line with Good Clinical Practice, which received the approval of WHO Ethical Review Committee and the relevant National Committees. Collaboration with National Control Programs and local research institutions has been crucial during the collection and storage of samples at local storage sites. The Institut Pasteur in Paris hosts the Repository Bank, storing samples and dispatching requests to Research Institutions and other users, after approval by an Exit Committee of WHO and FIND.
Collection of samples is ongoing, and the Bank is continuing to receive requests. Inquiries should be addressed to WHO (francoj@who.int) or FIND (joseph.ndungu@finddiagnostics.org)