Development of a multiantigenic serological test for tuberculosis diagnosis.

Abstract

Objective. The present work evaluated a multi-antigen printing immunoassay (MAPIA) for the serological diagnosis of tuberculosis.
Materials And Methods. Sera were obtained from 66 patients with tuberculosis, verified clinically and bacteriologically and from 47 healthy individuals (control group). Sample sera were used for detection of antibodies against 3 enriched mixtures of proteins and 5 unique recombinant antigens. The antigens were presented in a solid matrix. Sensitivity, specificity and predictive values were evaluated and confirmed by a logistic regression analysis. A prevalence value was calculated and used for the selection of the best antigenic combination.
Results. The sensitivity and specificity values of individual antigens varied between 5-83% and 9-100%. The enriched mixtures values were more accurate than those obtained with the recombinant antigens. Combinations of several antigens improved the sensitivity values up to the 81% level. In most cases, specificity values of 57% or less were obtained.
Conclusions. These results suggested that the multiantigenic test can be a useful screening tool, to be used in conjunction with the more definitive diagnostic tests.