In this study, we analysed IgG avidity to p 15.5 kD, p 17 kD and p 47 kD antigens by a new avidity assay termed avidity western blot. The determination was performed in two groups. Group I consisted of 27 patients with primary and secondary syphilis and group II comprised 10 subjects with latent syphilis. We found that low avidity antibodies were directed against the p 17 kD and p 47 kD antigen...

High avidity cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) are important in viral clearance and anti-tumor immunity, however, mechanisms for their optimal generation and maintenance in vivo remain unclear. Immunizing mice with an antibody-DNA vaccine encoding a single CTL epitope, induces a 100 fold higher avidity response than peptide vaccination with the identical epitope. The high avidity response is retain...

BACKGROUND Acute toxoplasmosis in pregnant women presents a high risk of Toxoplasma transmission to the fetus. Early diagnosis is difficult, especially when serological testing for IgG/IgM antibodies fail to differentiate between a recent and a past infection. In this case, we rely on IgG avidity or PCR assays. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to compare conventional ELISA and IgG avidity...

Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan that is distributed worldwide. Recently, several tests for avidity of Toxoplasma IgG antibodies have been introduced to help discriminate between recently acquired and distant infections. The study was conducted in Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital, India from February 2011 to September 2012. Serum specimens were subjected to ...

18 IgG avidity tests are used to discriminate acute from chronic infections. There are few 19 reports on the IgG avidity profile of patients with visceral leishmaniasis (VL). This study 20 investigated the anti-Leishmania IgG avidity in patients with classic VL (n=10), patients 21 showing clinical cure after treatment (n=18), and asymptomatic subjects with at least one 22 positive Leishmania te...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate avidity of IgG anti-beta 2-glycoprotein I antibodies (anti-beta2-GPI) in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in relation to thrombosis, and to demonstrate a possible affinity maturation of IgG anti-beta 2-GPI during the disease course. METHODS 64 sera from 32 patients (18 with primary or secondary APS, 14 with SLE without ...

Tetrameric MHC/peptide complexes are important tools for enumerating, phenotyping, and rapidly cloning Ag-specific T cells. It remains however unclear whether they can reliably distinguish between high and low avidity T cell clones. In this report, tetramers with mutated CD8 binding site selectively stain higher avidity human and murine CTL capable of recognizing physiological levels of Ag. Fur...

Toxoplasma infection in pregnant women may cause congenital toxoplasmosis. Diagnosis of infection is based on serological tests aimed at detecting IgM and IgG antibodies against Toxoplasma gondii. However, IgM antibodies are not an accurate marker for discriminating between acute and latent infection. Detection of residual or persistent IgM may occur months or even years after primary infection...

IgG avidity tests are used to discriminate acute from chronic infections. There are few reports on the IgG avidity profile of patients with visceral leishmaniasis (VL). This study investigated the anti-Leishmania IgG avidity in patients with classic VL (n = 10), patients showing clinical cure after treatment (n = 18), and asymptomatic subjects with at least one positive Leishmania test (n = 20)...