HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Emmons, R. W. Articles by Lennette, E. H. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Emmons, R. W. Articles by Lennette, E. H.

Serologic Diagnosis of Colorado Tick Fever

A Comparison of Complement-Fixation, Immunofluorescence, and Plaque-Reduction Methods^*

Isolation of the virus, the most reliable means of diagnosing Colorado tick fever, is not always practicable. The standard complement-fixation test, using a mouse-brain-derived antigen, may not detect significant rises in antibody titer during the usual 2- or 3-week observation period. Complement-fixation (CF) tests, with antigens derived from infected mouse brains and from an established line of hamster-kidney cells, were compared with a neutralization (plaque-reduction) test and an indirect fluorescent-antibody (IFA) staining test for usefulness in the serologic diagnosis of 34 cases of Colorado tick fever. The cell-culture antigen was as reliable as the mouse-brain antigen, and its preparation was simpler. The CF-antibody titers and the neutralizing-antibody titers tended to be lower and slower to appear than the IFA titers. The IFA method was simple, rapid, and accurate. The IFA titers frequently appeared earlier after onset of illness and reached higher levels than did the CF titers.

^* This study was supported by Grant AI-01475 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, United States Public Health Service, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.