title: Evaluation of specific antibodies against Mycobacterium tuberculosis recombinant antigens for detection of recent infection.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Since an accurate test for detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis early infection is urgently needed, this study was designed for development of an efficient screening test in diagnosis of tuberculosis infection.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the present study, two recombinant proteins CFP-10, ESAT-6 were tested as antigens for the diagnosis of recent tuberculosis. The proteins were produced in Escherichia coli, purified and tested in indirect ELISAs with sera from 63 subjects with positive clinical results. Also, 56 sera from healthy persons were tested as controls. The results were compared with molecular and culture.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The levels of antibodies against M. tuberculosis antigens in patients with tuberculosis were significantly higher than those in healthy subjects. Among 63 patients, 58 were positive for ESAT-6, 54 for CFP-10.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Altogether, the role of M. tuberculosis recombinant proteins, as a suitable candidate for early diagnosis of tuberculosis infection was supported in this study. However, these strongly offer the potential of mixture or fusion of these recombinant proteins for better sensitivity and specificity.
authors.affiliation: Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute, Agricultural Research Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Karaj, Iran. Electronic address: mtebianian@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Majid
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tebianian
authors.affiliation: Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute, Agricultural Research Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Karaj, Iran.
authors.forename: Nader
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mosavari
authors.affiliation: Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute, Agricultural Research Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Karaj, Iran.
authors.forename: Morteza
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Taghizadeh
authors.affiliation: Applied Biotechnology Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, P.O. Box 14155-3651, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Seyyed Mahmoud
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Ebrahimi
keywords: CFP-10; ELISA; ESAT-6; Mycobacterium tuberculosis; Specific antibodies