evaluation of serum opsonic capacity against bordetella pertussis by chemiluminescence

serum opsonic capacity against b. pertussis was studied by using quantitative chemiluminescence (cl), a method known to have several advantages over conventional methods in evaluating opsonization and phagocytosis. sera from unvaccinated infants was shown not to contain opsonins against b. pertussis and in unvaccinated infants suffering from whooping cough, no opsonins were detected. in adults fully vaccinated during childhood, antibody titers decreased with time. therefore, antibody transfer to infants is negligible. the cl assay is simple, rapid, and reproducible, offering new possibilities to evaluate humoral immune mechanisms and phagocytosis in whooping cough.