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. 1997 Nov;4(6):687–691. doi: 10.1128/cdli.4.6.687-691.1997

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for detection of antibody to human herpesvirus 6.

K Chokephaibulkit 1, P A Brunell 1, V Vimal 1, C Long 1, K Schnabel 1, C B Hall 1
PMCID: PMC170641  PMID: 9384290

Abstract

The results obtained with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for detection of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) immunoglobulin G using a single 1:100 dilution of serum correlated well with those found by an indirect fluorescence microscopic assay (IFA) (r = 0.71). Concordant results were found in all 7 paired serum samples obtained from patients with acute primary infections and in 37 of 41 (90.24%) single serum samples. Fourteen serum samples (25%) which yielded nonspecific results by IFA were evaluable by ELISA. In a serologic survey using the ELISA, a disproportionate number of 12-month-old infants had low difference-of-optical-density values, suggesting that maternal antibody might persist beyond a year of age. This finding and the rises in antibody to HHV-6 found in patients with primary cytomegalovirus infections might lead to overestimation of HHV-6 infection rates in young children in seroprevalence studies. Other herpesvirus infections produced lesser effects on anti-HHV-6.

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Selected References

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