Abstract
BACKGROUND: Venipuncture sampling in test tubes for detecting malaria parasites using PCR assays possesses a number of limitations such as reluctance of patients, some difficulties in transportation of blood samples and freezing them for long time. To overcome the mentioned limitations, some approaches have been employed by a number of authors. This study was proposed to compare between DNA Banking Card (DBC) filter papers containing dried finger-prick blood and venipunctured frozen liquid blood. METHODS: A total of 75 specimens was prepared from the equal enrolled individuals using three blood storage approaches; making Geimsa-stained thin and thick smears from each individual to determine the malaria-positive or -negative specimens, spotting two to three drops of finger-prick blood onto the DBC filter paper, and collecting a 2-ml venous blood sample into EDTA-contained test tube from each individual. A semi-nested Multiplex PCR technique with DNA extracted from the two latter sets of specimens was used for plasmodia diagnosis. RESULTS: DNA samples isolated from dried blood spotted on the DBC filter papers resulted in 32 (42.7%) positive and 43 (57.3%) negative cases comparable with the results outcome of frozen liquid blood with 35 (46.7%) positive and 40 (53.3%) negative cases. Statistical analysis revealed higher sensitivity for SnM-PCR using DNA from liquid blood with 100% vs. dried blood spotted on DBC with 97% but higher specificity for the DBC with 100% vs. liquid blood with 95.2%. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the results obtained from this study to overcome the problems of venipuncture frozen liquid blood sampling, replacement of a reliable filter paper for preserving finger-prick blood samples is a trustable and useful facilitator particularly in remote malaria-endemic areas.