Detection of Babesia caballi infection by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using recombinant 48-kDa merozoite rhoptry protein

The 48-kDa Babesia caballi merozoite rhoptry protein was expressed using a pGEX4T expression vector in Escherichia coli as glutathione S-transferase f usion protein (GST-BC48). and the expressed GST-BC48 was used in an ELISA t o detect specific antibodies in serum samples. No cross-reaction was observ ed with sera from horses experimentally infected with Babesia equi. GST-BC4 8 ELISA was a highly sensitive and specific test when compared with the CFT . A total of 209 horse sera obtained from Central Mongolia were examined wi th the GST-BC48 ELISA and 46.4% (97/209) were found to be seropositive for B. caballi, suggesting that the GST-BC48 ELISA can be successfully used for both quarantine and epidemiological studies. (C) 2000 Australian Society f or Parasitology Inc. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved .