Dm. Rosalesborjas et al., RAPID SCREENING-TEST FOR TUBERCULOSIS USING A 38-KDA ANTIGEN FROM MYCOBACTERIUM-TUBERCULOSIS, Journal of clinical laboratory analysis, 12(2), 1998, pp. 126-129
A screening test for the diagnosis of tuberculosis by immunodot (IDt)
is described, using an antigen of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, namely,
a 38-kDa glycoprotein which has shown great specificity in previous se
rologic analyses. The test was used to examine 28 sera from patients w
ith lung tuberculosis. Of these, 85% were positive by micro-ELISA and
by the IDt test herein described. Central sera from healthy subjects (
n=20) gave negative results for ELISA and for IDt, which indicates tha
t the screening test is highly specific. The test is easy to handle an
d requires no equipment and is therefore particularly useful for field
studies. (C) 1998 Wiley-Liss. Inc.