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Whole cell lysate enzyme immunoassays vs. recombinant glycoprotein G2‐based immunoassays for HSV‐2 seroprevalence studies
Author(s) -
GarcíaCorbeira Pilar,
Hogrefe Wayne,
Aguilar Lorenzo,
GarcíadeLomas Juan,
Gil Angel,
Bayas José María,
Vilella Ana,
DalRé Rafael
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
journal of medical virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 1096-9071
pISSN - 0146-6615
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1096-9071(199912)59:4<502::aid-jmv13>3.0.co;2-k
Subject(s) - virology , seroprevalence , herpes simplex virus , antigen , recombinant dna , antibody , glycoprotein , serology , biology , immunoassay , typing , immunology , virus , microbiology and biotechnology , biochemistry , gene
Seroepidemiology studies of herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV‐2) infections have been difficult to carry out because antibodies to HSV type 1 (HSV‐1) show an extensive cross‐reactivity with HSV‐2 antigens. Many kits available currently are not entirely type specific for serodiagnosis of HSV‐2 infections and therefore do not allow reliable discrimination of past exposure to these closely related alphaherpes viruses. Attempts to develop type‐specific antigens have focused on the envelope glycoproteins, particularly glycoprotein G (gG). A cross‐sectional study was carried out to examine the seroprevalence of antibodies to HSV‐2 among healthy university students, using different methods: a whole cell lysate enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), two different ELISAs, and a newly developed immunoblot assay, the last three based on recombinant gG2. HSV‐2 prevalence was 24 times higher with the whole cell lysate ELISA (31%; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 27–35%) than the ELISAs and the immunoblot assay based on recombinant gG2 (1.3%; 95% CI: 0.1–2.5%), thus showing the inaccuracy of commercial tests based on whole‐antigen preparations for epidemiological studies. Laboratories should be cautious and ensure that commercial tests for HSV typing are based on type‐specific glycoproteins. J. Med. Virol. 59:502–506, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.