ELISA tests and monoclonal antibodies for EBV

Monoclonal antibodies have now been prepared against a number of the major polypeptides associated with the different EBV-induced antigenic complexes. These antibodies have made it possible to purify and characterize most of these polypeptides and to identify the viral genes encoding for these proteins. In addition, new ELISA tests have been developed which measure antibodies in different immunoglobulin classes against the purified polypeptides. These assays have been useful in the diagnosis of EBV-associated diseases in clinical laboratories. The development of these antibodies and their application to the development of the new ELISA tests will be reviewed in this paper.