Multiplex Human Malaria Array: Quantifying Antigens for Malaria Rapid Diagnostics

Malaria antigen detection through rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) is widely used to diagnose malaria and estimate prevalence. To support more sensitive next-generation RDT development and screen asymptomatic malaria, we developed and evaluated the Q-Plex Human Malaria Array (Quansys Biosciences, Logan, UT), which quantifies the antigens commonly used in RDTs- -specific histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP2), specific lactate dehydrogenase ( LDH), specific LDH ( LDH), and Pan malaria lactate dehydrogenase (Pan LDH), and human C-reactive protein (CRP), a biomarker of severity in malaria. At threshold levels yielding 99.5% or more diagnostic specificity, diagnostic sensitivities against polymerase chain reaction-confirmed malaria for HRP2, LDH, LDH, and Pan LDH were 92.7%, 71.5%, 46.1%, and 83.8%, respectively. culture strains and samples from Peru indicated that HRP2 and LDH combined improves detection of parasites with and deletions. This array can be used for antigen-based malaria screening and detecting deletion mutants of .