QUANTIFICATION OF CONSERVED ANTIGENS IN HELICOBACTER-PYLORI DURING DIFFERENT CULTURE CONDITIONS

In this study, we raised monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against three co nserved Helicobacter pylori antigens, i.e., the N-acetylneuraminyllact ose-binding fibrillar hemagglutinin, HpaA; the flagellin subunits, Fla A. and FlaB; and a species-specific 26-kDa protein. The MAbs were used for the development of sensitive inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbe nt assays for quantification of these antigens in H. pylori during var ious culture conditions. The quantities of these antigens varied consi derably (up to 8-fold) during different culture procedures and between strains (up to 10-fold).