Quality of antisera used in the diagnosis of cholera

Immunochemical characterization of an Ogawa-Inaba common antigenic determinant of Vibrio cholerae O1

Cholera remains an important public health problem in many parts of the world and the availability of an effective cholera vaccine is important for the prevention of cholera in the countries affected by this disease. Despite the appearance in 1992 of a new serogroup, 0139, of Vibrio cholerae, most of the cholera outbreaks are still caused by V. cholerae O1 biotype El Tor. Vaccine trials in Asia from 1968 to 1971, and studies of the production of serotype-specific antiserum in rabbits and of the protective activity of monoclonal antibodies against diarrhoeal disease in neonatal mice, have led to the conclusion that the Ogawa serotype contains a specific antigenic determinant whereas the Inaba serotype contains a different antigenic determinant that cross-reacts with the Ogawa serotype. By studying the binding of anti-Ogawa monoclonal antibodies to synthetic oligosaccharide fragments mimicking the Ogawa O-specific polysaccharide, it has been shown that the terminal monosaccharide, bearing the 2-O-methyl group in the O-specific polysaccharide, is most probably the serotype-specific determinant for the Ogawa strain. However, study of the binding of a monoclonal antibody recognizing both Ogawa and Inaba serotypes suggested partial recognition of the core as well as of the O-specific polysaccharide of the LPS of V. cholerae O1. To further characterize this antigenic determinant that is common to the Ogawa and Inaba serotypes, the core and the O-specific polysaccharide linked to the core of V. cholerae O1 LPS were purified by preparative electrophoresis. The O-specific polysaccharide linked to the core was subjected to periodate oxidation to destroy sugars from the core. Binding studies of these purified saccharide fragments to a monoclonal antibody which is protective in mice and specific to the antigenic determinant common to Ogawa and Inaba serotypes showed that both the core and the O-specific polysaccharide are involved in this common antigenic determinant. This explains how the presence or the absence of the Ogawa-specific antigenic determinant would lead to the expression of two independent antigenic determinants of V. cholerae O1, one specific to the Ogawa serotype and the other common to both Ogawa and Inaba serotypes.

Detection of Vibrio cholerae with monoclonal antibodies specific for serovar O1 lipopolysaccharide

Six hybridoma cell lines, each of which produced a monoclonal antibody (MAb) against Vibrio cholerae O1 lipopolysaccharide (LPS), were established. Each MAb was active serologically by both enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and the slide agglutination test. In the ELISA, each MAb was tested against 7 O1 and 9 non-O1 LPS preparations. Three MAbs reacted with both Inaba and Ogawa serovars (A antigen), two MAbs reacted with the Ogawa serovars only (B antigen), and one MAb reacted with the Inaba serovars only (C antigen). Each MAb was also tested in the ELISA against whole-cell preparations of 37 O1 and 52 non-O1 V. cholerae serovars, 20 heterologous Vibrio species, and 37 heterologous bacterial species. The MAbs reacted with V. cholerae O1 cells only, except for one anti-A antigen MAb which reacted weakly with five V. cholerae non-O1 serovars and Serratia marcescens. Each anti-A antigen MAb was labeled with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) and tested by direct immunofluorescence against selected O1 and non-O1 serovars. Each MAb-FITC conjugate, when tested alone, exhibited O1-specific fluorescence; however, mixtures of the MAb-FITC dramatically enhanced fluorescence intensity on O1 cells. This finding was also visualized by immunoelectron microscopy on both thin-sectioned and negatively stained O1 cells by using an anti-mouse immunoglobulin-colloidal gold conjugate. These results suggest that the A antigen can be described by more than one epitope and that a superior serotyping reagent can be prepared from a defined mixture of MAbs.

Current perspectives on the epidemiology and pathogenesis of clinically significant Vibrio spp

Recent taxonomic advances have now implicated several different Vibrio species as human pathogens. While the most common clinical presentation of Vibrio infection continues to be gastroenteritis, an increasing number of extraintestinal infections are being reported, particularly in immunocompromised individuals. Detection of Vibrio infections requires a good clinical history and the use of appropriate isolation and identification procedures by the laboratory to confirm illnesses attributed to Vibrio species. Except for Vibrio cholerae O1 and Vibrio parahaemolyticus, there is little direct evidence linking the production of a myriad of cell-associated or extracellular factors produced by each species with human disease and pathogenesis. Many questions regarding pathogenic Vibrio species remain unanswered, including their frequency and distribution in environmental specimens (water, shellfish), infective doses, virulence potential of individual isolates, and markers associated with such strains.

Different types of monoclonal antibodies to Ogawa-specific and group-specific antigens of Vibrio cholerae O1

Nine monoclonal antibodies to Ogawa-specific antigenic determinants of Vibrio cholerae O1 and seven monoclonal antibodies to the Ogawa-Inaba common antigenic determinants were obtained. Specificities and reactivities were examined by slide or microdilution agglutination methods, along with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and immunoblotting analysis. In both the Ogawa-specific and Ogawa-Inaba common groups, it was revealed that there were two types of antibodies. One type showed strong agglutination with both live cells and heat-killed (100 degrees C for 30 min) cells in the microdilution agglutination test and in the slide agglutination test (type 1), while the other showed rather weak agglutination with heat-killed cells, especially in the slide agglutination test (type 2). Electronic measurement of agglutinates from these antibodies revealed that the size of aggregates varied. In the case of the type 2 antibodies, the size of aggregates obtained with heat-killed cells was smaller than those obtained with Formalin-killed cells. Results of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and immunoblotting analysis showed that all 16 antibodies were to the lipopolysaccharide of V. cholerae O1.

Rapid detection of Vibrio cholerae O:1 by motility inhibition and immunofluorescence with monoclonal antibodies

Monoclonal antibodies against the group and type specific antigens of Vibrio cholerae O:1 lipopolysaccharide were used for the rapid detection of Vibrio cholerae strains by motility inhibition and immunofluorescence. Motility inhibition of live Vibrio cholerae O:1 was obtained with group specific monoclonal antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies against the type specific antigens B (Ogawa) and C (Inaba) inhibited motility of strains of homologous serotypes only. Indirect immunofluorescence of heatfixed bacteria with monoclonal antibodies and fluorescein-isothiocyanate conjugated rabbit anti-mouse immunoglobulin was also shown to be suitable for the rapid detection of Vibrio cholerae O:1. Both tests were highly specific and no cross-reactions were observed with strains of non-O:1 vibrios, Escherichia coli or Salmonella spp. tested. However, a weak fluorescence of some Ogawa strains was observed when high concentrations of Inaba specific monoclonal antibodies were used.

Monoclonal antibody-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for identification and serotyping of Vibrio cholerae O1

Monoclonal antibodies directed against O-specific antigens of Vibrio cholerae O1 lipopolysaccharide were used in two different enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs), designed for identification and serotyping of V. cholerae O1. In the sandwich ELISA, a monoclonal antibody against the group-specific antigen was used as capture antibody, whereas peroxidase-conjugated monoclonal antibodies directed against group- and type-specific antigens were used as the second antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies were also used in ELISA inhibition tests with whole bacteria as inhibitors in microtiter trays coated with V. cholerae O1 lipopolysaccharide. In addition, the monoclonal antibodies were shown to be useful in slide agglutination tests. The enzyme immunoassays were equally sensitive, showing positive reactions with all V. cholerae O1 strains tested, whereas all V. cholerae non-O1 as well as strains of Escherichia coli, Shigella sonnei, Salmonella spp., Citrobacter freundii, and Brucella abortus were negative. The microtiter application makes the immunoassays suitable with low consumption of reagents for screening of samples from suspected cases as well as from the environment.