Molecular and immunological characterization of Mycobacterium tuberculosis CFP-10, an immunodiagnostic antigen missing in Mycobacterium bovis BCG.

ABSTRACT: In order to identify antigens that may be used in the serodiagnosis of active tuberculosis (TB), we screened a Mycobacterium tuberculosis genomic expression library with a pool of sera from patients diagnosed with active pulmonary TB. The sera used lacked reactivity with a recombinant form of the M. tuberculosis 38-kDa antigen (r38kDa), and the goal was to identify antigens that might complement r38kDa in a serodiagnostic assay. Utilizing this strategy, we identified a gene, previously designated lhp, which encodes a 100-amino-acid protein referred to as culture filtrate protein 10 (CFP-10). The lhp gene is located directly upstream of esat-6, within a region missing in M. bovis BCG. Immunoblot analysis demonstrated that CFP-10 is present in M. tuberculosis CFP, indicating that it is likel

SUBMITTER: Dillon DC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC87375 | biostudies-literature | 2000 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature