Diagnostic assays for equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) developed under the leadership of Daniel Howe, PhD, a molecular parasitologist at the University of Kentucky Gluck Equine Research Center, are now available exclusively at Equine Diagnostic Solutions LLC (EDS).

The new diagnostic tests are quantitative enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) based on multiple immunogenic proteins located on the surface of the Sarcocystis neurona parasite, which causes the neurologic disease EPM. Horses infected with S. neurona produce a vigorous antibody response to these parasite proteins, which can be accurately measured with the ELISAs.

“Recent studies have demonstrated the clinical utility of the new tests for the accurate diagnosis of EPM,” Howe said. “Specifically, by using the ELISAs to compare the amount of antibody present in the serum versus the cerebrospinal fluid of a horse, it is now possible to achieve a much more reliable assessment of whether the horse is suffering from EPM.”

Howe joined the faculty at the Gluck Center in 1999 and heads a research program focused on the molecular biology of S. neurona

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