Trypanosomiasis

Over 60 million people are at risk of contracting Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) and there are about 300,000 currently infected patients. A severely neglected disease according to WHO criteria, Human African Trypanosomiasis typically affects poor rural populations that live in the endemic areas from 36 sub-Saharan African countries, generally far away from primary health facilities. Seven countries are severely affected, including Sudan, Uganda, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola. Human African Trypanosomiasis or sleeping sickness is an infectious disease caused by two subspecies of the Trypanosoma brucei parasite that is transmitted to humans by the tsetse fly.

Human African Trypanosomiasis patients present symptoms from fever, headache and joint pains to neurological, sensorial and motor dysfunction. The neurological disorders, e.g. epileptic seizures and the patient being in coma, that are due to the fact that the parasites enter the central nervous system of the patient, are the most typical symptoms of the disease. The patients inevitably die without treatment after a prolonged period of grave illness. Treatment is difficult and not without any risks as the drugs used to treat trypanosomiasis are very toxic. The problem is being exacerbated due to the occurrence of drug resistance.

It is of great importance to diagnose the disease as early as possible, in particular before the parasite enters the central nervous system. The diagnosis is being made by microscopical examination of blood samples or spinal fluid. In addition, serology using the card agglutination test for trypanosomiasis (CATT) is possible.

The current available methods for diagnosis and parasite identification, which is essential to install proper treatment, are insufficient. Furthermore, there is a need to develop new medicines. Research towards trypanosomiasis is being hampered by a severe lack of funding. The development of new, less toxic drugs, is not a priority for pharmaceutical companies.