Rapid Enzyme Immunoassays and Enzyme Enhanced Hybridization Assays for the Practical Diagnosis of Viral Infections

摘要

The research performed in contract No. N01-AI-22680 was directed at the study of principles which could be applied to the development of practical assay systems for the diagnosis of medically important viruses and other infectious agents. The work performed in the contract has thus led to the development of a number of new assay systems which offer improved sensitivity, specificity, and practicality as compared to previously available assay systems. Specific accomplishments include the development of a novel method for the non-isotopic labelling of nucleic acids and performance of DNA hybridization techniques, the devising of new enzymatic labelling methods with improved turnover rates and feasibility of visual readings, the development of practical means for the utilization of large quantities of poly-clonal antibodies in the eggs of chickens immunized with virus, and the optimalization of practical methods for the elimination of non-specific interference in clinical specimens. In addition, the authors have devised new methods for the performance of latex and erythrocyte agglutination assays which markedly improve the performance characteristics of these assay systems. These assay systems were applied to the detection of a number of medically important infectious agents in human body fluids.