title: A competition ELISA for the detection of mycobacterial antigen in tuberculosis exudates.
abstract: An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was designed to detect the inhibition of BCG-anti-BCG reactions by soluble antigens of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Eighty-four samples were tested of which 59 were of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) (25 control, 10 bacterial, 14 viral and 10 tuberculous meningitis); and twenty-five were of pleural or ascitic fluid (15 tuberculous exudates and 10 non-tuberculous samples). A statistically significant difference (p less than 0.01) was found between the tuberculous and control groups. The sensitivity and specificity of this test was almost 100%--no false negatives and only one false positive result occurred among the samples of CSF tested.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Natal, Durban, Republic of South Africa.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ramkisson
authors.forename: Y M
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Coovadia
authors.forename: H M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Coovadia
mesh_terms: D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis*; D001202:Ascitic Fluid / Q000382:microbiology; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000382:microbiology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006801:Humans; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000276:immunology*; D010996:Pleural Effusion / Q000382:microbiology; D014390:Tuberculosis, Meningeal / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D000942:Antigens, Bacterial