LEPTOSPIROSIS IS AN ACUTE, FEBRILE, POTENTIALLY FATAL BACTERIAL INFECTION IN MAN.

LEPTOSPIROSIS IS AN ACUTE, FEBRILE, POTENTIALLY FATAL BACTERIAL INFECTION IN MAN. THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS PROJECT ARE TO 1) DEVELOP A DIPSTICK DOT IMMUNOBINDING ASSAY (DOT-ELISA) FOR RAPID AND ECONOMICAL DETECTION OF SERUM ANTIBODIES TO PATHOGENIC SEROVARS OF LEPTOSPIRA INTERROGANS, 2) EVALUATE THE DOT-ELISA USING HUMAN SERA HAVING ANTIBODIES TO SEROVARS OF L. INTERROGANS, 3) OPTIMIZE TEST COMPONENTS SUCH AS PATIENT SERUM DILUTION, ENZYME-CONJUGATED ANTIBODY, AND SUBSTRATES, AND 4) DETERMINE ASSAY CROSS-REACTIVITY USING SERA FROM PATIENTS WITH OTHER DISEASES. THE DEVELOPMENT OF A DIPSTICK DOTELISA FOR L. INTERROGANS WILL REPRESENT A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT OVER EXISTING CULTURE METHODS AND DIAGNOSTIC TESTS WHICH ARE TEDIOUS, TIME-CONSUMING, AND EXPENSIVE. THIS RAPID, VISUALLY READ TEST REQUIRES MINIMAL TECHNICAL SKILL, NO LABORATORY EQUIPMENT, AND IS COSTEFFECTIVE; THE REACTED DIPSTICK MAY BE KEPT AS A PERMANENT RECORD. THE SIMPLICITY, SAFETY AND VERSATILITY OF THE DIPSTICK DOT-ELISA MAKES THIS ECONOMICAL PROCEDURE ESPECIALLY AMENABLE TO COMMERCIAL APPLICATION FOR USE BY PHYSICIANS IN HOSPITALS AND SMALL CLINICS TO DETECT HUMAN LEPTOSPIROSIS AND BY VETERINARIANS IN THE FIELD FOR DIAGNOSIS OF THIS DISEASE IN LIVESTOCK.