01931nas a2200325   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653002400055653001000079653001200089653001500101653001100116653001100127653001000138653002400148653002800172653000900200100001500209700001200224700001300236700001200249700001700261700001300278700001000291245009100301300001000392490000800402520118100410022001401591       2008                            d  c2008 Feb10aAdenosine Deaminase10aAdult10aAnimals10aBiomarkers10aFemale10aHumans10aIndia10aLeishmania donovani10aLeishmaniasis, Visceral10aMale1 aTripathi K1 aKumar R1 aBharti K1 aKumar P1 aShrivastav R1 aSundar S1 aPai K00aAdenosine deaminase activity in sera of patients with visceral leishmaniasis in India.  a135-80 v3883 a<p><b>BACKGROUND: </b>Serum adenosine deaminase (ADA) activity increases in diseases where cellular immunity is involved. Since cell-mediated immune responses play a paramount role in the pathogenesis and healing of the visceral leishmaniasis, therefore, the present study was undertaken to evaluate the serum ADA activity in different pathological conditions.</p><p><b>METHODS: </b>Adenosine deaminase was determined in sera of active visceral leishmaniasis (VL) patients at diagnosis and at posttreatment (n=22), healthy controls (n=15), patients with malaria (n=10), leprosy (n=10) and tuberculosis (n=10).</p><p><b>RESULTS: </b>Serum levels of ADA were significantly higher in active VL patients as compared to controls and patients with other diseases. ADA levels were also raised in patients with malaria, though not significantly as compared with active VL patients. Sera from VL patients at posttreatment showed significantly decreased ADA levels over sera from patients at diagnosis.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS: </b>The results therefore suggest that ADA is involved in the pathogenesis and could be used as a clinical marker in the diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis.</p>  a0009-8981