Comparative evaluation of the agar gel immunodiffusion test and two commercial ELISA kits for the serodiagnosis of equine infectious anemia.
Abstract: Selected sets of serum samples of horses were tested blindly in a comparative investigation for antibodies against Equine Infectious Anemia (EIA) virus. Three commercial kits were used, a well-established agar-gel immuno-diffusion kit which our laboratory has been using routinely for 14 years on one hand, a competitive ELISA kit (CELISA) and a non-competitive ELISA kit on the other hand. The American EIA Reference Laboratory in Ames cotested 56 serum samples with the same 3 products, with highest-level correlation, thereby ascertaining full dependability of our own results. Five EIA experts supplied us critically weak or doubtfully reacting serum samples of experimentally infected horses together with their own test results, by necessity limited to the then available AGID in most instances. A high degree of correlation was found between our and their AGID results. In our own laboratory good correlation was found between the AGID test and one lot of the CELISA product. Time of seroconversion was coincident in some experimentally infected horses, partly AGID, partly CELISA proved more sensitive. Another lot of the CELISA product deteriorated completely long before the warranted validity, an unpleasant finding experienced by many other laboratories alike. The non-competitive ELISA product showed unacceptable inter-lot differences, oscillation between positive and negative results on consecutive samples of one and the same horse, never reacted with the weak positive International Reference Serum, and one lot deteriorated well beyond its expiration date. We discuss our results with the background: high sensitivity versus false-positive horses and advocate to maintain at their present sensitivity levels the AGID and the CELISA tests and not to push them further, as would be technically possible.
Publication Date: 1990-08-01 PubMed ID: 2169689DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0450.1990.tb01082.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Comparative Study
- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
- Antibodies
- Clinical Study
- Comparative Study
- Diagnosis
- Diagnostic Technique
- Disease
- Disease Diagnosis
- Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA)
- Epidemiology
- Equine Health
- Equine Infectious Anemia
- Horses
- Immunodiffusion
- Immunology
- Infection
- Infectious Disease
- Laboratory Methods
- Serodiagnosis
- Serum
- Veterinary Medicine
- Virus
Summary
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This study compares the effectiveness of three commercial kits in detecting Equine Infectious Anemia (EIA) antibodies in horses. Results reveal variations in performance, highlighting the importance of reliability in these tests, rather than pushing for increased sensitivity.
Study Overview
- The researchers conducted a comparison of three diagnostic tests for EIA. These included a long-used agar-gel immuno-diffusion kit, a competitive ELISA kit (CELISA), and a non-competitive ELISA kit.
- Samples of horse serum were tested blindly, meaning the testers were unaware of any prior test results or diagnoses.
- The study was corroborated by the American EIA Reference Laboratory using the same three testing products, ensuring the reliability of the results.
Results Comparison
- The team noted a high degree of similarity between their agar-gel immuno-diffusion test results and those of five other EIA experts who provided samples.
- They also observed a good correlation between their agar-gel immuno-diffusion test and one batch of the CELISA product.
- A significant revelation came when they found that one batch of the CELISA product had deteriorated long before the guaranteed validity period, an issue experienced by other labs as well.
Non-competitive ELISA Kit Performance
- The non-competitive ELISA kit, however, showed unacceptable inconsistency with significant differences spotted among various production batches.
- The kit also showed inconsistent results for the same sample tested at different times, and failed to react with a weak positive International Reference Serum.
- One batch of this kit also declined in quality beyond its expiration date.
Discussion and Recommendation
- The researchers discuss their findings in the context of the trade-off between high sensitivity tests and the risk of false-positive results.
- The resulting recommendation is to maintain the current sensitivity levels of the agar-gel immuno-diffusion and CELISA tests, rather than pushing for higher sensitivity, which could lead to inaccurate results.
Cite This Article
APA
Bürki F, Rossmanith E.
(1990).
Comparative evaluation of the agar gel immunodiffusion test and two commercial ELISA kits for the serodiagnosis of equine infectious anemia.
Zentralbl Veterinarmed B, 37(6), 448-458.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0450.1990.tb01082.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Institute of Virology of the Veterinary University, Vienna, Austria.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Antibodies, Viral / blood
- Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
- Equine Infectious Anemia / diagnosis
- Horses
- Immunodiffusion
- Infectious Anemia Virus, Equine / immunology
- Reagent Kits, Diagnostic / veterinary
Citations
This article has been cited 2 times.- Paré J, Simard C. Comparison of commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and agar gel immunodiffusion tests for the serodiagnosis of equine infectious anemia.. Can J Vet Res 2004 Oct;68(4):254-8.
- Sellon DC. Equine infectious anemia.. Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract 1993 Aug;9(2):321-36.
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