Analysis of genes expressed at the infective larval stage validates utility of Litomosoides sigmodontis as a murine model for filarial vaccine development.

We used an expressed sequence tag approach to analyze genes expressed by the infective larvae of the rodent filarial parasite Litomosoides sigmodontis. One hundred fifty two new genes were identified, including several proposed as vaccine candidates in studies with human filarial parasites. Our findings have important implications for the use of L. sigmodontis as a model for filarial infection.