Estimation of type-specific neutralizing antibody to herpes simplex virus type 2 in uterine cervical cancer patients by a new absorption method.
A simple method of estimating type-specific neutralizing antibody to type 2 herpes simplex virus (HSV-2) was devised with the use of the microneutralization system. Serially diluted serum was mixed in the well with a constant amount of type 1 virus (HSV-1), and after 3 days' incubation at 37 C, the plate was irradiated with ultraviolet light. The absorbing HSV-1 consisted of culture fluid plus an extract of infected Vero cells not especially concentrated. The well then received indicator HSV-1 or HSV-2, and after being left at 37 C for 1 hr a suspension of dispersed Vero cells was dropped into the wells, following our standard neutralization procedure. Preliminary tests with rabbit antisera showed that even a low level of HSV-2 antibody was detected by this method, unless an exceptionally high titer of HSV-1 antibody originally coexisted with the HSV-2 antibody. Sera from acutely infected persons testified to the specificity of the antibody so detected. It was revealed by means of the new technique that the rate of HSV-2 antibody was significantly higher in uterine cervical cancer patients than in control women. There was no correlation between the clinical stage of cervical cancer and the presence of HSV-2 antibody.
D000042:Absorption; D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000096:biosynthesis; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D005260:Female; D005831:Genital Diseases, Female / Q000276:immunology; D006561:Herpes Simplex / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009500:Neutralization Tests; D011247:Pregnancy; D011817:Rabbits; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology*
D000914:Antibodies, Viral