Application of a commercial immunoblot to define EBV IgG seroprofiles

Immunoblot (IB) techniques using different Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) antigens have been applied for detecting specific antibodies, making possible to obtain EBV seroprofiles in a single determination. The aim of this study was to evaluate a commercial IB for the detection of EBV-specific IgG (Euroimmun, Lübeck, Germany).

A total of 117 samples classified as EBV primary recent infections (n = 70), past infections (n = 29), or not infected (n = 18) have been used. The samples were characterized by immunofluorescence, by testing EBV capsid antigens IgM and IgG (using indirect approaches) and EBV nuclear antigen (by anticomplement technique; Meridian Bioscience Inc.).

Using the cut-off value as defined by the IB manufacturer, the concordance, relative sensitivity, and relative specificity were 85.5 (100/117), 94.3% (66/70), and 72.3% (34/47), respectively. If a corrected cut-off value was considered to classify the samples, the corresponding corrected figures were 89.7, 88.6, and 91.5%, respectively.

Being a useful serological diagnostic tool, IB for testing EBV IgG seems to be an adequate approach to define EBV seroprofiles. However, efforts to better define the cut-off value should be made in order to improve the performance of the assay in evaluation.