IMMUNOCHEMISTRY OF TYPE II GROUP B STREPTOCOCCI

B组链球菌是严重危害人类健康的常见原因 感染。它们是母体和成人B群的主要原因 链球菌感染，是仅次于III型菌株的第二大病因 新生儿感染的风险。针对特定类型的抗体 B群链球菌的多糖被认为是一种重要的 在宿主防御这些生物方面的作用。然而，确切的性质是 保护性抗体所针对的免疫决定因素 导演是不被理解的。因此，其完整的化学结构 将使用甲基化分析来确定II型多糖， 特定的化学降解和~(13)C-NMR。 重要的免疫决定因素将使用不同的 低聚糖片段在单抗酶联免疫吸附试验中的应用 II型多糖类抗体。此外，它的特殊性还在于 自然产生的B型链球菌抗体将是 在选定的已知定植患者的血清中进行检测 状态或感染。将采用两种主要的抗体检测方法：a 测定抗体水平的定量酶联免疫吸附试验和吞噬细胞 用于评估这些抗体的功能作用的试验。

Type II group B Streptococci are a frequent cause of serious human infections. They are the major cause of maternal and adult group B streptococcal infections and are second only to type III strains as a cause of neonatal infections. Antibodies directed against the type-specific polysaccharides of group B streptococci are thought to play an important role in host defense against these organisms. However, the precise nature of the immunological determinants against which protective antibodies are directed is not understood. Therefore, the complete chemical structure of the type II polysaccharide will be determined using methylation analysis, specific chemical degradations and 13C-N.M.R. The exact nature of the importance immunological determinants will be defined using various oligosaccharide fragments as inhibitors in an ELISA employing monoclonal antibodies to the type II polysaccharide. In addition, the specificity of naturally occurring antibodies to type II group B streptococci will be examined in selected human sera from patients with known colonization status or infection. Two main antibody assays will be employed: a quantitative ELISA for measuring antibody levels, and an opsonophagocytic assay for assessing the functional role of these antibodies.