Herein, we determined the seroprevalence, seroconversion, and risk factors associated with Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection among pregnant women in Taipei, Taiwan. Pregnant women attending antenatal consultation in a Taipei medical center were invited, and 104 women completed a self-administered structured questionnaire. Venous blood samples were collected during the first and third trim...

OBJECTIVE To determine HSV-2 seroprevalence, risk factors, and antibody avidity among a sample of Mexican pregnant women. MATERIAL AND METHODS The avidity test was standardized with different urea concentrations and incubation times; the cut-off point was calculated to determine the low avidity (early infection). IgG antibodies against HSV-2 were detected from pregnant and postpartum women fr...

Among the immunoglobulins, the IgGs have received the lion’s share of attention and dominate the monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that are US Food and Drug Administrationapproved or are in research pipelines leading to the clinic. Whereas IgG is relatively easy to produce and purify and a number of host expression systems have been developed for that isotype, interest in the utility of other isotyp...

Most antibodies are multivalent, with the potential to bind with high avidity. However, neutralizing antibodies commonly bind to virions monovalently. Bivalent binding of a monoclonal antibody (MAb) to a virion has been documented only in a single case. Thus, the role of high avidity in antibody-mediated neutralization of viruses has not been defined clearly. In this study, we demonstrated that...

We report the detection of specific IgA antibodies and the determination of IgG avidity in sequential serum samples from a patient exhibiting significant levels of Toxoplasma-specific IgM antibodies for seven years after the onset of the clinical symptoms of toxoplasmosis. IgM antibodies were detected by an indirect immunofluorescence test and by three commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent ass...

LOCAL ANTIBODY FORMATION IN INFECTED RABBIT KIDNEYS WAS STUDIED WITH THREE TECHNIQUES: the ammonium sulfate precipitation technique, the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and by binding of newly synthesized (14)C-labeled antibodies to heat-killed bacteria. Local antibody was detected by day 11 of infection with all three techniques, and a significant correlation was found in titers by all thre...

The serological prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii was studied among 839 pregnant women in two hospitals from Franceville (Gabon), between May 2007 and December 2007. Specific T gondii IgG and IgM were measured by Enzyme Linked Fluorescent Assay (ELFA). Datation of the infection was carried out by avidity test. Fifty-six percent of women in this study were immunised compare to the 71% who were fou...

Immunoglobulin A (IgA) and IgG antibodies against Streptococcus mutans K1R and 10449 were measured in serum and in stimulated whole saliva from two groups of naval recruits, representing high or low caries susceptibility. The antibody assays were performed by using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and the results were expressed by a method able to estimate the amount of high-avidity and t...