Elisa based diagnostic test for Aspergillosis

Detection of lgE and lgG antibodies in Aspergillosis is of diagnostic significance. The serological methods, such as agglutination, gel diffusion and counter immuno electrophoresis that are commonly used in the laboratories for diagnosis of Aspergillus induced infections, are less sensitive and high cross reactivity is often encountered. We carried out work on characterization and identification of diagnostically relevant antigens ofA. fumigatus. Well characterized antigens were used to develop an ELISA with 92% sensitivity and 89% specificity for detection of specific lgE and lgG in the sera of patients of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA), aspergilloma and invasive aspergillosis. Subsequently, a sample kit having "ready to use type" of dry reagents (powder/tableted buffers and lyophilized antigen, conjugate and reference sera) was formulated. The kit was validated with sera from patients of ABPA, related allergic disorders, tuberculosis, post-Kochs cases and thalassemic children receiving repeated blood transfusions. The performance of the kit was found to be satisfactory with coded sera.