Immunoglobulin M seroneutralization for improved confirmation of Japanese encephalitis virus infection in a flavivirus-endemic area.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The mainstay of diagnostic confirmation of acute Japanese encephalitis (JE) involves detection of anti-JE virus (JEV) immunoglobulin M (IgM) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Limitations in the specificity of this test are increasingly apparent with the introduction of JEV vaccinations and the endemicity of other cross-reactive flaviviruses. Virus neutralization testing (VNT) is considered the gold standard, but it is challenging to implement and interpret. We performed a pilot study to assess IgG depletion prior to VNT for detection of anti-JEV IgM neutralizing antibodies (IgM-VNT) as compared with standard VNT.

Methods

We evaluated IgM-VNT in paired sera from anti-JEV IgM ELISA-positive patients (JE n=35) and negative controls of healthy flavivirus-n

SUBMITTER: Bharucha T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9623734 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature