title: Multiplex assay detection of immunoglobulin G antibodies that recognize Babesia microti antigens.
abstract: Human babesiosis, a blood-borne infection caused by several species of Babesia, including B. microti, is an emerging disease that is endemic in the Northeast, upper Midwest, and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States. Risk factors for babesiosis include exposure to the infected tick vector and blood transfusions from infected donors. In this work, we cloned and expressed two of the immunodominant antigens from B. microti and used them in a multiplex bead format assay (MBA) to detect parasite-specific IgG responses in human sera. The MBA using recombinant B. microti secreted antigen 1 (BmSA1) protein was more specific (100%) and slightly more sensitive (98.7%) than the assay using a truncated recombinant BMN1-17 construct (97.6% and 97.4%, respectively). Although some antibody reactivity was observed among sera from confirmed-malaria patients, only one Plasmodium falciparum sample was simultaneously positive for IgG antibodies to both antigens. Neither antigen reacted with sera from babesiosis patients who were infected with Babesia species other than B. microti. Both positive and negative MBA results were reproducible between assays and between instruments. Additional studies of these recombinant antigens and of the multiplex bead assay using blood samples from clinically defined babesiosis patients and from blood donors are needed to more clearly define their usefulness as a blood screening assay.
authors.affiliation: Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA. jpriest@cdc.gov
authors.forename: Jeffrey W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Priest
authors.forename: Delynn M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Moss
authors.forename: Kimberly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Won
authors.forename: Charles W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Todd
authors.forename: Leslie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Henderson
authors.forename: Cara C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Marianna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wilson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics; D041001:Babesia microti / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001404:Babesiosis / Q000175:diagnosis*; D019411:Clinical Laboratory Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D006801:Humans; D007118:Immunoassay / Q000379:methods; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood*; D008863:Microspheres; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D011994:Recombinant Proteins