Detection of antibodies to the human immunodeficiency virus by a rapid fluorescence-labelled immunosorbent assay

The development and assessment of a fluorescence-labelled immunosorbent assay for the detection of antibodies to the human immunodeficiency virus is described. Test serum is incubated in microtitre wells on which antigens have been coated. If present in the test serum, antibodies to the human immunodeficiency virus bind to the solid-phase antigens. In turn the antibodies are quantified with anti-human immunoglobulin labelled with fluorescein. Positive samples produce an intense fluorescence which is measured in a spectrofluorimeter. When used to test a panel consisting of normal serum and antibody-positive serum from infected patients the assay proved to be 100% specific and to have a sensitivity of 100%. The assay has many of the advantages of micro enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, but does not suffer from the drawbacks associated with the use of an enzyme label. It requires fewer manipulations and is quicker to carry out than an equivalent enzyme-linked test.