Near-infrared spectroscopy and machine learning algorithms for rapid and non-invasive detection of Trichuris

by Tharanga N. Kariyawasam, Silvia Ciocchetta, Paul Visendi, Ricardo J. Soares Magalh ães, Maxine E. Smith, Paul R. Giacomin, Maggy T. Sikulu-Lord BackgroundTrichuris trichiura (whipworm) is one of the most prevalent soil transmitted helminths (STH) affecting 604 –795 million people worldwide. Diagnostic tools that are affordable and rapid are required for detecting STH. Here, we assessed the performance of the near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technique coupled with machine learning algorithms to detectTrichuris muris in faecal, blood, serum samples and non-invasively through the skin of mice. MethodologyWe orally infected 10 mice with 30T.muris eggs (low dose group), 10 mice with 200 eggs (high dose group) and 10 mice were used as the control group. Using the NIRS technique, we scanned faecal, serum, whole blood samples and mice non-invasively through their skin over a period of 6 weeks post infection. Using artificial neural networks (ANN) and spectra of faecal, serum, blood and non-invasive scans from one experiment, we developed 4 algorithms to differentiate infected from uninfected mice. These models were validated on mice from the second independent experiment. Principal findingsNIRS and ANN differentiated mice into the three groups as early as 2 weeks post infection regardless of the sample used. These results correlated with those from concomitant serological and parasitological investigations. SignificanceTo our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate t...
Source: PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases - Category: Tropical Medicine Authors: Source Type: research