Human IgG antibody response to Glossina saliva: an epidemiologic marker of exposure to Glossina bites.

The evaluation of human antibody response specific to arthropod saliva may be a useful marker of exposure to vector-borne disease. Such an immunologic tool, applied to the evaluation of the exposure to Glossina bites, could be integrated in the control of human African trypanosomiasis (HAT). The antibody (IgG) response specific to uninfected Glossina fuscipes fuscipes saliva was evaluated according to the vector exposure and trypanic status in individuals residing in an HAT-endemic area. A high level of anti-saliva IgG antibodies was only detected in exposed individuals, whether infected or not by Trypanosoma brucei gambiense. In addition, the evaluation of specific IgG response represented spatial heterogeneity according to studied sites. These results suggest that the evaluation of anti-saliva IgG could be an indicator of Glossina exposure and thus could be integrated in other available tools to identify populations presenting risks of HAT transmission.