Description
Principle of the assay: The ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay) is an immunoassay, which is particularly suited to the determination of antibodies in the field of infectious serology. The reaction is based on the specific interaction of antibodies with their corresponding antigen. The test strips of the microtiter plate are coated with specific antigens of the pathogen of interest. If antibodies in the sample are present, they bind to the fixed antigen. A secondary antibody, which has been conjugated with the enzyme alkaline phosphatase, detects and binds to the immune complex. The colourless substrate pnitrophenylphosphate is then converted into the coloured product p-nitrophenol. The signal intensity of this reaction product is proportional to the concentration of the analyte in the sample and is measured photometrically.
Background: Dengue is currently one of the most important arboviral causes of infectious disease and death in humans. The virus is transferred to humans by the two major mosquito vectors Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. Approximately 2.5 billion individuals reside in dengue endemic risk areas. According to the World Health Organization, up to 100 million cases of dengue fever occur worldwide each year. The single-stranded RNA Dengue Virus is a member of the family Flaviviridae. The genome consists of approximately 11 kb and encodes three structural and seven nonstructural proteins. The Dengue Viruses can be classified into four different serovars namely DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3 and DEN-4. ELISA test-systems are especially suited for the differential analysis of immunoglobulin classes directed against the virus