Diagnosis of influenza A virus infections by detection of specific immunoglobulins M, A, and G in serum

Abstract

The value of immunoglobulin M (IgM) detection in the early diagnosis of influenza A was examined in a prospective study during an outbreak of influenza A/Philippines/2/82 (H3N2) virus infection in February and March 1986. The IgM response was investigated in sera from 64 adults with influenzalike symptoms; we found a fourfold rise in titer or high titers (.80) of influenza A virus antibodies by the complement fixation test. The IgM response, analyzed by the hemadsorption immunosorbent technique, was compared with the IgG and IgA responses analyzed by an indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the hemadsorption immunosorbent technique, respectively. Antigen detection in nasopharyngeal secretions by immunofluorescence was performed for all patients on admission to hospital. Specific IgM was detected in 86% (55 of 64) of the patients with influenza A. In sera from 36% (18 of 64) of the patients it was detected already on admission. Influenza A virus antigen was detected in nasopharyngeal cells by immunofluorescence on admission in 53% (34 of 64) of the patients. A combination of immunofluorescence and IgM results gave a significantly higher diagnostic rate, 69% (P < 0.01), on admission than did each of the two tests separately. An IgA serum antibody response was seen in 76% (48 of 64) of the cases but did not contribute to any increase in the diagnostic rate. IgM detection by the hemadsorption immunosorbent technique was found to be a valuable supplement for the diagnosis of influenza A in an early phase of the disease.

Relationship between viral antibodies and bronchial hyperresponsiveness in 495 unselected children and adolescents

“…Therefore, if viral respiratory infection is the cause of BHR in asymptomatic subjects, it seems reasonable to believe that measurement of serum antibodies, as performed in the present study, can prove or refute the hypothesis that asymptomatic BHR is caused by recent viral respiratory infection. On the other hand, Vikerfors et al (35) found that serum antibodies against influ-enza A remain increased for at least 60 d, suggesting that the subjects in the present study with viral antibodies might have had respiratory illness within the last 60 d. These findings indicate that the subjects with antibodies might earlier have had BHR, but then, more than 6 weeks later, had returned to bronchial responsiveness within normal range, indicating that we overestimated recent or subclinical respiratory infection inducing BHR in the present study. Thus, only two subjects (12%) had BHR and viral antibodies against influenza B, whereas 15 subjects examined in the same period of 4 weeks, in which the epidemic was going on, had bronchial responsiveness within normal range.…”

“…In any case, clinical data of respiratory illness are of uncertain value, since many of the respiratory viruses examined in the present study were accompanied by similar symptoms. Vikerfors et al (35) have found that the sensitivity ofthe ELISA to influenza A was 86%, and Meurman etal. (24) have found similar sensitivity ofthe ELISA-RSV (79%), suggesting that a substantial number of children and adolescents developed specific viral antibodies during a viral respiratory illness.…”

Versatile microfluidic complement fixation test for disease biomarker detection

“…Serology refers to the diagnostic identification of antibodies (Abs) in plasma serum and other body fluids [6]. The complement fixation test (CFT) is a classical serological method for the detection of Abs against infectious pathogens and has proven itself as a standard diagnostic method in many medical laboratories [6][7][8][9]. The key feature involved in CFT is the complement system, a component of the innate immune system that is characterized by serum proteins that react with antigen-antibody (Ag-Ab) complexes.…”

“…The ability of CFT in detecting IgG and IgM Abs has allowed its wide use in screening tests for acute primary infections and therapy successes [9]. CFT is also an important tool for monitoring the status of a person with a known autoimmune disease.…”

Detection of enterovirus‐specific total and polymeric IgA antibodies in serum using a synthetic peptide or heated virion antigen in ELISA

“…The diagnostic value of specific total serum IgA antibodies as marker of virus infections is controversial [Halonen et al, 1979a,b;Nikoskelainen et al, 1979;Friedman and Kimmel, 1982;Sarov and Haikin, 1983;Sikuler et al, 1983;Strand and Hoddevik, 1984;Guglielmino et al, 1989;Vikerfors et al, 1989;Chau et al, 19931. In contrast, different reports have shown the usefulness of virus-specific polymeric IgA as indicator of acute or recent infection [Negro Ponzi et al, 1985;Hashido et al, 1989;Kawano and Minamishima, 19921. Against this background, the presence of heterotypic enteroviral total and polymeric IgA antibodies in serum from patients with acute enterovirus infections were examined and compared with sera from patients with other infections. The presence of heterotypic enteroviral total IgA antibodies in serum samples from blood donors that were collected in different seasons was also investigated and compared.…”