02216nas a2200421   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001500055653001000070653002400080653001000104653002100114653001100135653001600146653001100162653002100173653001100194653001000205653001200215653001600227653002500243653001600268653003000284100001200314700001200326700001600338700001300354700001600367700001400383700001200397245012600409856005900535300001000594490000700604050003200611520113700643022001401780       1992                            d  c1992 Mar10aAdolescent10aAdult10aAntigens, Bacterial10aChild10aChild, Preschool10aFamily10aGlycolipids10aHumans10aImmunoglobulin M10aInfant10aKorea10aleprosy10aMiddle Aged10aMycobacterium leprae10aPhilippines10aSeroepidemiologic Studies1 aCho S N1 aKim S H1 aCellona R V1 aChan G P1 aFajardo T T1 aWalsh G P1 aKim J D00aPrevalence of IgM antibodies to phenolic glycolipid I among household contacts and controls in Korea and the Philippines.  uhttp://leprev.ilsl.br/pdfs/1992/v63n1/pdf/v63n1a03.pdf  a12-200 v63  aInfolep Library - available3 a<p>Phenolic glycolipid I (PGL-I) is a Mycobacterium leprae-specific antigen and the antibodies to the antigen may suggest an M. leprae infection. To compare the M. leprae transmission among the populations, we compared the prevalence of anti-PGL-I IgM antibodies among household contacts and controls between Korea and the Philippines. In Korea (prevalence of leprosy--0.04: 1000), the prevalence of anti-PGL-I antibodies were 4.8% among controls and 8.0% among contacts, respectively. On the other hand, the seroprevalence rate was 10.8% among controls and 13.4% among contacts in the Philippines (prevalence of leprosy--0.70: 1000). Interestingly, a marked difference was noted in the prevalance of anti-PGL-I antibodies among children between the countries; 10-14% among children under 10 years old and 15-18% among those aged between 10 and 19 in the Philippines compared to 0% and 2.9-6.4% in Korea, respectively. This study, therefore suggests that a high prevalance of anti-PGL-I IgM antibodies among children may indicate an active transmission of M. leprae, resulting in a higher incidence of leprosy in the population.</p>  a0305-7518