Claims
- 1. A method for detecting the presence of a bacterial or fungal pathogen in a host, which pathogen is phagocytosed and subject to at least partial degradation by phagocytes of the host, comprising:
- (1) isolating from the host a blood sample comprising a cellular population which comprises phagocytes;
- (2) contacting the population with saponin capable of rupturing the phogocytes to release at least one soluble antibody of a phagocytosed bacterial or fungal pathogen but incapable of rupturing unphagocytosed pathogen;
- (3) separating at least one soluble antibody of the degraded pathogen from unphagocytosed pathogen by centrifugation;
- (4) contacting the soluble antibody in the supernatant fluid with a biospecific binding partner therefor; and
- (5) measuring the extent of binding.
- 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the phagocyte is a polymorphonuclear leukocyte.
- 3. The method of claim 1 wherein the pathogen is Staphylococcus epidermidis, the phagocyte is a polymorphonuclear leukocyte, the soluble antigen is peptidoglycan and the antibody is a monoclonal anti-peptidoglycan antibody.
- 4. The method of claim 1 wherein the pathogen is Streptococcus faecalis, the phagocyte is a polymorphonuclear leukocyte, the soluble component is lipoteichoic acid and the biospecific binding partner is a monoclonal anti-lipoteichoic antibody.
Parent Case Info
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 07/327,409, filed Mar. 20, 1989, abandoned, which in turn is a continuation of application Ser. No. 06/939,003, filed Dec. 8, 1986, abandoned, which in turn is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 06/611,588, filed May 18, 1984, abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (3)
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