title: Development and validation of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for human metapneumovirus serology based on a recombinant viral protein.
abstract: The human metapneumovirus (hMPV) is a newly reported respiratory virus belonging to the Paramyxoviridae family that has been associated with bronchiolitis and pneumonia in young children. We developed a simple enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for hMPV serological testing using the nucleoprotein (N) from group A or B (N-A or N-B) as the antigen, and we evaluated it in both children and adults. The N proteins were first used in a Western immunoblot assay to identify hMPV-negative sera, which were then used to determine the cutoff value of the ELISA test. Subsequent evaluation of the ELISA-N test revealed that the mean reciprocal antibody titer of 20 randomly selected seropositive children was 143, compared to 69 for 20 seropositive adults. In a prospective evaluation of 71 adults with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 58 (81.6%) had prior hMPV antibodies and 3 (4.2%) had evidence of recent hMPV infection. In testing paired sera from adults (n = 4) with recent hMPV group A infection confirmed by reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR), ELISAs using the N-A or N-B proteins were able to detect hMPV seroconversion. Moreover, testing of paired sera from three adults with a recent infection by the human respiratory syncytial virus confirmed by RT-PCR and serology did not reveal any increase in hMPV antibodies over time. The ELISA-N is a simple, objective, and specific serological test useful for detecting anti-hMPV antibodies following group A or B viral infections, which should permit a better understanding of the epidemiology of this virus.
authors.affiliation: Research Center in Infectious Diseases of the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec, Québec City, Canada.
authors.forename: Marie-Eve
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Hamelin
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Boivin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D001483:Base Sequence; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D029121:Metapneumovirus / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009698:Nucleoproteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D018184:Paramyxoviridae Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D009698:Nucleoproteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D014764:Viral Proteins