Characterization of antigens for Q fever serodiagnostics

The aim of this study was to identify candidate proteins for serodiagnostics of Q fever by monoclonal antibodies (MAbs), and to clone, express, and purify the selected proteins for use as antigens in ELISA. The reactivity of three MAbs to Coxiella burnetii (C. b.) Nine Mile strain and one MAb to Priscilla strain was tested using SDS-PAGE, 2-D gel electrophoresis, immunoblot analysis, and mass spectrometry. Three immunoreactive Q fever-specific proteins discriminated by MAbs, namely the CBU_0937 protein, outer membrane Com1 (CBU_1910) protein, and elongation factor Tu (CBU_0236) were identified. Successful PCR-amplification, cloning, expression, and purification of the recombinant proteins Com1 and CBU_0937 allowed their use for the screening of sera from patients with Q fever endocarditis (18) or acute Q fever (16) in ELISA. The recombinant protein CBU_0937 with unknown biological function proved to be a more applicable diagnostic tool for Q fever ELISA as compared to the Com1 protein.