Description
Intended Use: The Chlamydia Pneumoniae IgM ELISA Kit is intended for the detection of IgM antibody to C. Pneumoniae in human serum or plasma.
Summary and Explaination: Chlamydia pneumoniae, the third recognized of five possible species of Chlamydia (trachomatis, psittaci, pneumoniae, pecorum and an as-yet-unnamed species) was formerly known as Chlamydia spp. Strain TWAR. This respiratory pathogen which causes acute respiratory disease, pneumonia and pharyngitis is often isolated from patients with otitis media with effusion, pneumonia with pleural effusion and in asymptomatic respiratory tract infections. C. pneuomoniae causes up to 10% of community-acquired pneumonia cases and it is also a risk factor for coronary heart disease and Guillain-Barré syndrome. Seroprevalence of C.pneumoniae among children is low and increases sharply in teenagers, continues to increase until middle age, and remains high (>50%) into old age, suggesting that most people have more than one C.pneumoniae infection during their lifetime. Primary chlamydial infection is characterized by a predominant IgM response within 2 to 4 weeks and a delayed IgG and IgA response within 6 to 8 weeks. After acute C.pneumoniae infection, IgM antibodies are usually lost within 2 to 6 months IgG antibody titers rise and usually decrease slowly; whereas IgA antibodies tend to disappear rapidly. When primary chlamydia infection is suspected, the detection of IgM is highly diagnostic. In reinfection, IgM level may be rarely detected while IgG and IgA levels rise quickly, often in one to two weeks. IgA antibodies have shown to be a reliable immunological marker of primary, chronic and recurrent infections. These antibodies usually decline rapidly to baseline levels following treatment and eradication of the chlamydia infections.
Principle of the test: Diluted patient serum (serum diluent contains sorbent to remove rheumatoid factor and human IgG interference) is added to wells coated with purified antigen. IgM specific antibody, if present, binds to the antigen. All unbound materials are washed away and the enzyme conjugate is added to bind to the antibody-antigen complex, if present. Excess enzyme conjugate is washed off and substrate is added. The plate is incubated to allow the hydrolysis of the substrate by the enzyme. The intensity of the color generated is proportional to the amount of IgM specific antibody in the sample