Improved detection of circulating antigen in cattle infected with Taenia saginata metacestodes.

In order to improve the sensitivity and the specificity of an existing IgM monoclonal antibody-based ELISA (Brandt et al., 1992) for the detection of circulating antigen in the sera of cattle infected with T. saginata metacestodes, a modified sandwich ELISA was developed.

Prevalence of cysticercosis in epileptics and members of their families in Burundi.

In the province of Bururi in Burundi, 103 epileptics and 72 control subjects from the same households were examined for cysticercosis. Antigen was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 4.9% of epileptic persons and in 4.

Evaluation and comparison of the Amplicor HIV-1 PCR kit with an 'in-house' nested PCR.

Background: The polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a powerful gene amplification technique, is moving rapidly from the research laboratory into routine clinical use.

Objectives: To evaluate the specificity and sensitivity of a commercially available PCR kit, the Amplicor HIV-1 PCR kit (AMP) and to compare it with an in-house nested PCR, which amplified part of the POL gene (POL(n)).

Study Design: A total of 517 samples were tested by AMP, including 159 fresh whole blood specimens from HIV-1 antibody positive Europeans and 358 archival samples (338 seropositive and 20 seronegative individuals) originating from 35 different countries in Africa and Europe.

Quantification of human immunodeficiency virus in plasma by RNA PCR, viral culture, and p24 antigen detection.

A semiquantitative PCR technique for detecting human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) RNA in plasma was compared with quantitative viral culture and p24 antigen detection in plasma. Ninety-three samples from 20 symptomatic, 10 asymptomatic, and 10 seronegative individuals were tested. For most of the seropositive patients, consecutives samples were examined.

HIV screening and confirmation: a simplified and less expensive testing algorithm.

In this study we investigated the performance of fourteen different assays capable of simultaneously detecting antibodies to HIV-1 and HIV-2, referred to as combined screening assays (CSAs), on a panel of 371 sera, with a prevalence of 51.5% and 1.3% for HIV-1 and HIV-2 antibodies respectively.