title: Comparison of immunofluorescence, particle agglutination, and enzyme immunoassays for detection of human T-cell leukemia virus type I antibody in African sera.
abstract: The effectiveness of four screening tests for detecting antibody to human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I) was determined by using 2,700 African serum specimens. The tests studied were indirect immunofluorescence, particle agglutination from Fujirebio, and two enzyme immunoassays, one from Abbott Laboratories that used virus lysate from HUT 102 cells and the other from Cambridge BioScience Corp. that used an env recombinant protein. Positive and doubtful sera were confirmed by Western immunoblot and radioimmunoprecipitation assay with Food and Drug Administration seropositivity criteria. The best results were obtained with the two enzyme immunoassays, which were more sensitive (100 and 98.6% [Abbott and Cambridge, respectively]) and more specific (98.7 and 96.5%). Indirect immunofluorescence exhibited difficulties for reading and interpretation. With particle agglutination, prozone was observed for 9 of 78 HTLV-I-positive serum specimens. False-positives in any of the tests were not linked to cross-reactions with human immunodeficiency viruses. However, confirmation tests remain necessary for HTLV-I screening.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology-Virology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Dupuytren, Limoges, France.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Verdier
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Denis
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Leonard
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sangare
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Patillaud
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Prince-David
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Essex
mesh_terms: D000349:Africa; D000372:Agglutination Tests; D003429:Cross Reactions; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D015490:HTLV-I Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D007158:Immunologic Techniques; D008403:Mass Screening
chemical_list: D015483:HIV Antibodies; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies