Specific ELISA-IgM antibodies for diagnosis and epidemiological surveillance of flaviviruses in Africa
Autor(es): Saluzzo J.F., Sarthou J.L., Cornet M.
Resumo: The complement-fixation (CF) test and IgM antibody-capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were compared for the serological diagnosis of medically important flavivirus infections in Africa. The specificity and kinetics of antibody development were studied using serum specimens from humans during investigation of the 1983 yellow fever epidemic in Burkina Faso, from monkeys and young children in eastern Senegal, and from persons with clinical flavivirus infections. IgM antibodies detected by ELISA showed complete specificity in cases of yellow fever, Zika and Wesselsbron infection, whereas extensive cross-reactions were noted by ELISA in dengue infections and by the CF test in the case of all flaviviruses. The combined use of end-point IgM ELISA and virus isolation permitted a specific diagnosis in all cases of yellow fever studied during the epidemic in Burkina Faso. These techniques thus provided a means of rapid diagnosis using a single serum sample, and should be applied in programs of surveillance and epidemic investigation. The persistence of IgM antibodies to yellow fever and Zika is relatively brief (1-3 months). Tests on a small number of cases of dengue2 and 4 also indicated the brief duration of specific IgM compared to CF antibodies. The IgM ELISA has also been applied to the surveillance of sylvatic flavivirus transmission in eastern Senegal. With the successive isolation of yellow fever and Zika viruses in two years, the sensitivity and limits of the serological technique have been elucidated. The best approach for detection of flavivirus transmission is timely serological surveillance of young children; a minimum of one survey should be conducted at the end of the rainy season. Moreover, routine surveillance of wild monkeys for specific IgM antibodies allow early detection of flavivirus activity. This approach is especially useful for the planning and initiation of field studies to assess the occurrence of clinical infections, particularly those due to dengue virus. Two techniques for measurement of IgM antibodies by ELISA were compared. The indirect assay using peroxidase appears to be the most sensitive.
Palavras-Chave: Complement Fixing Antibody; Immunoglobulin M; Diagnosis; Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Flavivirus; Human; Liver; Methodology; Monkey; Priority Journal; Serodiagnosis; Seroepidemiology; Yellow Fever
Imprenta: Annales de l'Institut Pasteur Virology, v. 137, n.2, p. 155-170, 1986.
Descritores: Zika virus - Antibodies ; Zika virus - Serological diagnosis ; Zika virus - Dengue ; Zika virus - Epidemic ; Zika virus - Zika fever
Data de publicação: 1986
