Evaluation of a competitive ELISA method for the determination of Klebsiella O antigens.
Strains of Klebsiella spp. are often inagglutinable by O-specific antisera because of the copious capsule produced by most isolates. A competitive ELISA method based on the observation that bacterial supernates containing homologous O antigen specifically inhibited the reaction of type-specific antisera with purified LPS coated on ELISA plates was used to examine the O antigen of 82 isolates of different Klebsiella species and subspecies. The O antigens O1/2ab (19 isolates), O2ab (13 isolates), O2ac (11 isolates) and O3 (16 isolates) were found to account for > 70% of the O antigenic types. Overall, 65 (79%) of the strains could be assigned to a specific O serogroup. The method is suitable for examining the role of individual O antigens in systemic klebsiella infections such as nosocomial septicaemia and pneumonia.
Department of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene, University of Ulm, Germany.
M
M
Trautmann
A S
AS
Cross
G
G
Reich
H
H
Held
R
R
Podschun
R
R
Marre
D000818:Animals; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D001667:Binding, Competitive; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D000939:Epitopes / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D007106:Immune Sera / Q000276:immunology; D007709:Klebsiella / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology*; D019081:O Antigens / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011817:Rabbits; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012703:Serotyping
D000939:Epitopes; D007106:Immune Sera; D019081:O Antigens