Complement fixation studies with a varicella-zoster antigen.
Complement fixation studies with a varicella-zoster antigen.
复制标题
用水痘带状疱疹抗原补充固定研究。
作者：
E. Gold;G. Godek
可以从感染这些试剂的组织培养细胞中制备令人满意的补体固定水痘或带状疱疹抗原。这两种试剂在抗原上无法区分，并且任一抗原都可用于测量对任一感染的抗体反应。补体结合试验的研究与其他研究人员的结果一致 (3, 4)，并为水痘和带状疱疹病毒相同的说法提供了基础。
与水痘相比，带状疱疹后抗体的产生明显更快，这可能代表继发反应或加强反应，或者可能只是表明通过皮疹的出现来确定发病时间可能是错误的。大多数带状疱疹患者在随后出现皮疹的区域都有感觉异常或某种形式的不适史。也许这个症状应该被认为是疾病发作的时间。带状疱疹后抗体无法比水痘后持续更长时间，这使得支持二次免疫反应的概念变得更加困难。
感染后 4 年内或更短时间内抗体水平的下降并不伴随感染易感性的任何明显变化；没有观察到水痘或带状疱疹的第二次发作。有水痘病史的儿童再次接触这种感染并不会导致抗体水平升高。
针对带状疱疹或水痘病原体的补体固定抗体可能比中和抗体或其他类型的抗体（如流行性腮腺炎、麻疹、脊髓灰质炎等病毒所发生的情况）下降得更快，或者现有技术无法测量的抗体水平可能足以防止感染。需要对中和抗体进行灵敏的测试来解决这一点。然而，从所提出的研究中可以清楚地看出，CF 测试可用于测量带状疱疹或水痘后的抗体反应，但对于确定感染的易感性价值不大。
A satisfactory complement-fixing varicella or zoster antigen can be prepared from tissue culture cells infected with these agents. The two agents are antigenically indistinguishable and either antigen may be used to measure the antibody response to either infection. The studies with the complement fixation test are consistent with the results of other investigators (3, 4) and provide the basis for the statement that varicella and herpes zoster viruses are identical.
The apparently more rapid development of antibody following zoster in comparison with varicella may represent a secondary or booster response, or may simply indicate that dating the onset by the appearance of the rash may be erroneous. Most patients with zoster have a history of paresthesia or some form of discomfort in the area in which the rash later appears. Perhaps this symptom should be considered the time of the onset of the disease. The failure of antibody to persist for a greater duration following zoster than after varicella makes it even more difficult to support the concept of a secondary immune response.
The fall in antibody levels within 4 years or less following infection was not accompanied by any apparent change in susceptibility to infection; no second attacks of varicella or zoster were observed. Re-exposure of children with a history of chickenpox to that infection did not produce a rise in antibody levels.
Complement-fixing antibodies to the agents of zoster or varicella may fall more quickly than neutralizing or other types of antibody (as occurs with the viruses of mumps, measles, poliomyelitis, and others), or levels of antibody not measurable by present techniques may be sufficient to protect from infection. A sensitive test for neutralizing antibody is needed to resolve this point. It is clear from the studies presented, however, that the CF test may be used to measure the antibody response following zoster or varicella, but it is of little value for determining susceptibility to infection.