Neutralizing antibody to herpes simplex virus type 1 in patients with oral cancer

Immunoglobulin class of antibody to herpes simplex virus in patients with oral cancer

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to measure antibody of the IgG, IgA, and IgM classes against Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) in human sera. Patients with untreated oral cancer had higher levels of IgM antibody to HSV-1 than did either patients with acute or recurrent herpetic infections or age-matched control subjects. Levels of IgM antibody to cytomegalovirus and total serum IgM concentrations were similar in all groups. Patients who had been treated successfully for oral cancer more than one year earlier did not have higher levels of IgM antibody to HSV-1. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that cancer of the mouth is associated with expression of HSV-1 antigens that stimulate IgM rather than IgG antibody responses.

Decline in specificity of the ELISA due to storage of serum, and its recovery by adsorption with kaolin

Several laboratories have experienced problems with the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) due to non-specific background binding of human sera, but no general solution has been introduced. In this study the ELISA was used to measure antibody to herpes simplex virus in human sera which had been stored at -20 degrees C for up to 3 years, and the specificity was assessed by comparing the absorbance achieved with the virus neutralization titer. The severity of background binding was minimal in sera which had been obtained recently, but increased with storage time and gradually eliminated the specificity of the assay. When sera were adsorbed with kaolin, background binding of all sera was markedly reduced and the specificity was restored.