Premium
RAPID DIAGNOSIS OF INFLUENZA A INFECTION BY IMMUNOFLUORESCENCE
Author(s) -
OLDINGSTENKVIST ELISABETH,
GRANDIEN MONICA
Publication year - 1977
Publication title -
acta pathologica microbiologica scandinavica section b microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.909
H-Index - 88
eISSN - 1600-0463
pISSN - 0304-131X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1699-0463.1977.tb01978.x
Subject(s) - immunofluorescence , serology , antigen , virus , antibody , virology , cell , immunology , indirect immunofluorescence , medicine , intracellular , biology , genetics , microbiology and biotechnology
Indirect immunofluorescence (IF) on cell spreads from nasopharyngeal secretions (NPS) was used for the rapid diagnosis of influenza A infection and was compared with IF on monkey kidney cells infected by NPS. The clinical diagnosis of influenza A infection was confirmed by serology in 32 of 40 patients. In 27 of the 32 patients (84 per cent), the diagnosis was achieved by IF on cell spreads of NPS. In 13 of 15 (87 per cent) subjects with positive serology, the early appearance of influenza A virus antigen was revealed by indirect IF on infected monolayer cells. No false positive specimens were found among serologically negative subjects by either method. Consequently, the reliability of IF on cell spreads of NPS is very similar to IF on infected cell cultures, but offers a much quicker diagnosis (3–4 h as compared to 1–3 d). Monovalent anti‐human IgG FITC should be used instead of polyvalent antihuman Ig FITC, as the latter contains anti‐IgA which may adhere to intracellular IgA in the epithelial cells of NPS and thereby cloak the viral antigen.