IgM-capture ELISA of serum samples collected from Filipino dengue patients

Viral antigens for 4 dengue serotypes were produced in C6/36 Aedes albopictus cells. These were used as assay antigens for IgM-capture ELISA to detect IgM antibodies in sera of dengue patients from 3 hospitals in Metro Manila, Philippines. A total of 378 serum samples came from National Children's Hospital (NCH), San Lazaro Hospital (SLH), and St Luke's Medical Center (SLMC), from January to November 1995. Three hundred and four (304) out of 378 serum samples, or 80.42% showed positive IgM ELISA titer against at least one of the 4 assay antigens. Dengue type 4 (D4) antigen detected antibodies in 61.90% (234/378) of these serum samples, whereas type 1 (D1), type 3 (D3), and type 2 (D2) had detection rates of 60.05% (227/378), 50.79% (192/378) and 49.47% (187/378) respectively. Although the results show that both D1 and D4 are the most effective antigens in identifying dengue infections for this batch of samples, the use of a cocktail of antigens is still recommended. The results of this study are the basis for the IgM-capture ELISA protocol presently applied for the laboratory confirmation of dengue cases in the Philippines.