On October 11th, a reporter from People’s Daily, Huang Weixin, reported from Zanzibar, Tanzania, about a notable event leading up to World Standards Day. A training session focused on the standards and laboratory testing capabilities for schistosomiasis control was recently held on Pemba Island, Zanzibar. This initiative was a collaborative effort between a team of experts from China and the local disease prevention and control agency.
Over 80 healthcare professionals and laboratory technicians from various public health institutions and hospitals in the region participated in the training. During the sessions, the Chinese experts provided in-depth explanations about the biological characteristics and epidemiological traits of Schistosoma mansoni, as well as critical knowledge on diagnosis and treatment. They specifically highlighted the testing technologies for detecting this parasite, including urine microscopy and nucleic acid testing.
The training also introduced two established detection standards for Schistosoma mansoni— the “Urine Filtration Microscopy Method for Schistosoma Mansoni Eggs (Group Standard T/JPMA014-2022)” and the “Recombinase-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Method for Schistosoma Mansoni Nucleic Acid Detection (Jiangsu Province Local Standard DB32/T4565-2023).” Participants benefitted from personalized guidance, enhancing their grasp of these vital testing techniques.
Masoud, the Director of the Medical Administration Department at the Pemba Health Authority, expressed optimism regarding the impact of the training. He noted that the skills and standards acquired during the training would significantly enhance local stakeholders’ capacity to conduct regulated diagnostics for Schistosoma mansoni, thereby laying a solid foundation for timely patient detection and treatment.
In 2014, China signed a memorandum of understanding at the World Health Assembly to collaborate on schistosomiasis control in Tanzania, with the Chinese government committing to provide financial and technical support. By 2017, the first group of experts from Jiangsu Province’s Schistosomiasis Prevention Research Institute began working on Pemba Island. As of September 2023, the second phase of China’s assistance program for schistosomiasis control in Zanzibar was officially launched.
It’s worth mentioning that for years, the Jiangsu Province’s research institute has focused on the global goal of schistosomiasis elimination and the prevention of imported cases within China. They have actively developed new techniques and products while synthesizing insights and strategies from both domestic and international experts on schistosomiasis control. This led to the creation of the two distinct detection standards aimed at enhancing the diagnostic approaches for Schistosoma mansoni.
