Detection of antibodies in sera from Chagas' disease patients using a Trypanosoma cruzi immunodominant recombinant antigen.
A Trypanosoma cruzi DNA fragment encoding an immunodominant repetitive antigen (H49) was subcloned into a protein purification and expressed system. Purified H49 peptide reacted specifically in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with sera from T. cruzi-infected patients, but not with sera from patients with other parasitic diseases such as leishmaniasis and T. rangeli-infection. The H49 recombinant ELISA was able to detect specific antibodies in 84% of chronic chagasic serum samples tested. One of the major advantage of the recombinant ELISA for serodiagnosis of chronic Chagas' disease resides in its high specificity (100%). Our data suggest that recombinant peptides could provide a practical basis for specific diagnosis tests for Chagas' disease.
Paranhos-Bacalla
G S
GS
Bio-Mérieux, Lyon, France; Biolab Diagnóstica, São Paulo, Brasil.
Santos
M R
MR
Cotrim
P C
PC
Rassi
A
A
Jolivet
M
M
Camargo
M E
ME
Da Silveira
J F
JF
D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan / Q000276:immunology; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000276:immunology*; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006801:Humans; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D011528:Protozoan Infections / Q000276:immunology; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000276:immunology*; D012698:Serologic Tests; D014349:Trypanosoma cruzi / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*
D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes; D011994:Recombinant Proteins