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Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, December 2008, p. 1755-1759, Vol. 15, No. 12
1071-412X/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/CVI.00148-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Serological Diagnosis of Leprosy in Patients in Vietnam by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay with Mycobacterium leprae-Derived Major Membrane Protein II{triangledown}

Masanori Kai,1* Nhu Ha Nguyen Phuc,2 Thuy Huong Hoang Thi,2 An Hoang Nguyen,2 Yasuo Fukutomi,1 Yumi Maeda,1 Yuji Miyamoto,1 Tetsu Mukai,1 Tsuyoshi Fujiwara,3 Tan Thanh Nguyen,2 and Masahiko Makino1

Department of Microbiology, Leprosy Research Center, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 4-2-1 Aoba-cho, Higashimurayama, Tokyo 189-0002, Japan,1 Quyhoa National Leprosy & Dermato-Venereology Hospital, Ghenhrang District, Quynhon City, Binhdinh, Vietnam,2 Institute for Natural Science, Nara University, Nara 631-8502, Japan3

Received 21 April 2008/ Returned for modification 13 June 2008/ Accepted 12 October 2008

A serological diagnostic test using phenolic glycolipid-I (PGL-I) developed in the 1980s is commercially available, but the method is still inefficient in detecting all forms of leprosy. Therefore, more-specific and -reliable serological methods have been sought. We have characterized major membrane protein II (MMP-II) as a candidate protein for a new serological antigen. In this study, we evaluated the effectiveness of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using the MMP-II antigen (MMP-II ELISA) for detecting antibodies in leprosy patients and patients' contacts in the mid-region of Vietnam and compared to the results to those for the PGL-I method (PGL-I ELISA). The results showed that 85% of multibacillary patients and 48% of paucibacillary patients were positive by MMP-II ELISA. Comparison between the serological tests showed that positivity rates for leprosy patients were higher with MMP-II ELISA than with PGL-I ELISA. Household contacts (HHCs) showed low positivity rates, but medical staff members showed comparatively high positivity rates, with MMP-II ELISA. Furthermore, monitoring of results for leprosy patients and HHCs showed that MMP-II is a better index marker than PGL-I. Overall, the epidemiological study conducted in Vietnam suggests that serological testing with MMP-II would be beneficial in detecting leprosy.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Microbiology, Leprosy Research Center, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 4-2-1 Aoba-cho, Higashimurayama, Tokyo 189-0002, Japan. Phone: 81-42-391-8211. Fax: 81-42-391-8807. E-mail: mkai{at}nih.go.jp

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 22 October 2008.

Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, December 2008, p. 1755-1759, Vol. 15, No. 12
1071-412X/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/CVI.00148-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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