Herpesvirus papio 2: alternative antigen for use in monkey B virus diagnostic assays

摘要

The potential for use of Herpesvirus papio 2 (HVP2) relative to human herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV1) as an alternative test antigen for detection of anti-monkey B virus (BV) antibody in macaque sera was assessed. Standard ELISA formats were developed, using BV-, HVP2-, and HSV1-infected cell extracts. Performance of the HVP2 and HSV1 tests was assessed relative to that of the BV test. Using the BV antigen ELISA, 349 serum samples from 7 macaque species were tested, and results were classified as positive (253), negative (94) or suspect (2). The ELISA using HVP2 antigen detected 98.0% of BV-positive sera (248 of 253), whereas the HSV1-based ELISA detected only 96.0% (243 of 253). All 3 ELISAs identified the same 2 samples as suspect, and the HSV1 ELISA identified 3 additional BV-positive sera as suspect. The HVP2 antigen-based ELISA was equal in sensitivity and specificity to the BV antigen-based ELISA and was superior to the HSV1 ELISA for detection of BV-positive macaque sera. In addition, the HVP2 ELISA has greater laboratory safety, compared with BV antigen use for ELISA testing.