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Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology, May 2000, p. 417-421, Vol. 7, No. 3
1071-412X/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Treponema pallidum Surface Immunofluorescence Assay for Serologic Diagnosis of Syphilis

Antonella Marangoni,1 Vittorio Sambri,1 Elisa Storni,1 Antonietta D'Antuono,2 Massimo Negosanti,2 and Roberto Cevenini1,*

Sezione di Microbiologia1 and Sezione di Clinica Dermatologica,2 DMCSS, University of Bologna, St. Orsola Hospital, 40138 Bologna, Italy

Received 30 September 1999/Returned for modification 29 December 1999/Accepted 18 February 2000

A surface immunofluorescence assay (SIFA) using live spirochetes was analyzed and compared with Western blot (WB), fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption (FTA-ABS), microhemagglutination (MHA-TP), and Treponema pallidum immobilization (TPI) assays for detecting serum antibodies to T. pallidum in patients with syphilis, in disease controls, and in healthy subjects. SIFA and WB were 99% sensitive (99 of 100 positive specimens) and specific (140 of 140 negative specimens); FTA-ABS showed a sensitivity and a specificity of 90 and 89% (90 of 100 positive and 125 of 140 negative specimens), respectively. MHA-TP showed a sensitivity of 84% (84 of 100 positive specimens) and a specificity of 98.5% (138 of 140 negative specimens). Finally, TPI had a sensitivity of 52% (52 of 100 positive specimens) and a specificity of 100% (140 of 140 negative specimens). The T. pallidum SIFA was therefore highly specific, showing no equivocal reactivities with control sera, and sensitive. The results suggest the possible use of SIFA as a confirmatory test in the serologic diagnosis of syphilis.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Sezione di Microbiologia, DMCSS, University of Bologna, St. Orsola Hospital, via Massarenti 9, 40138 Bologna, Italy. Phone: 39 051 4290913. Fax: 39 051 341632. E-mail: cevenini{at}almadns.unibo.it.

Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology, May 2000, p. 417-421, Vol. 7, No. 3
1071-412X/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Giacani, L., Sambri, V., Marangoni, A., Cavrini, F., Storni, E., Donati, M., Corona, S., Lanzarini, P., Cevenini, R. (2005). Immunological Evaluation and Cellular Location Analysis of the TprI Antigen of Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum. Infect. Immun. 73: 3817-3822 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Sambri, V., Marangoni, A., Giacani, L., Gennaro, R., Murgia, R., Cevenini, R., Cinco, M. (2002). Comparative in vitro activity of five cathelicidin-derived synthetic peptides against Leptospira, Borrelia and Treponema pallidum. J Antimicrob Chemother 50: 895-902 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Sambri, V., Marangoni, A., Eyer, C., Reichhuber, C., Soutschek, E., Negosanti, M., D'Antuono, A., Cevenini, R. (2001). Western Immunoblotting with Five Treponema pallidum Recombinant Antigens for Serologic Diagnosis of Syphilis. CVI 8: 534-539 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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