Differentiation between thermophilic Campylobacter species by species-specific antibodies

• Published in: Journal of applied bacteriology Vol. 72; no. 6; p. 467
• Main Authors: Griffiths, P L, Moreno, G S, Park, R W
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01.06.1992
• Subjects: Absorption; Antibodies, Bacterial - immunology; Antibody Specificity; Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins - immunology; Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins - isolation & purification; Blotting, Western; Campylobacter - immunology; Campylobacter - isolation & purification; Campylobacter coli - immunology; Campylobacter coli - isolation & purification; Campylobacter jejuni - immunology; Campylobacter jejuni - isolation & purification; Cross Reactions; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Hot Temperature; Porins; Sensitivity and Specificity; Species Specificity
• ISSN: 0021-8847
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2672.1992.tb01860.x

The four species of thermophilic campylobacters, Campylobacter jejuni, C. coli, C. upsaliensis and C. lari, are difficult to distinguish from each other because of their lack of reactivity in many conventional biochemical and physiological tests. Those tests which do discriminate sometimes give discordant results. Species-specific antibody preparations (APs), capable of discriminating between the thermophilic campylobacter species by dot-ELISA, were raised by inoculation of mice with partially purified membrane protein. The APs produced were absorbed with cells of cross-reactive species and tested by dot-ELISA against reference and natural strains, the identities of which were confirmed by DNA/DNA hybridization. The results showed that such APs could be useful as an alternative to DNA/DNA hybridization for rapid species identification, for example in epidemiological surveys. Western blotting experiments with the APs showed that the specificity of the antibodies was not due to a single antigen.