Patent ID: 6083683
Filing Date: 2000-07-04
Classification: A61K,A61P,C12N,C12Q,C12R,G01N,Y02A,Y10S

Abstract:
A method for detecting antibodies to Shigella bacteria in an animal or biological sample therefrom, comprising the steps of:a) contacting said biological sample with a Shigella bacterium or a fragment thereof having an enhanced antigenic property, wherein said Shigella bacterium is harvested from a culture of a Shigella species, wherein said culture is at about early log phase, between early log phase and stationary phase, or at about stationary phase, grown in vitro under a combination of conditions comprising:1) about 0.05% to about 3% bile or about 0.025% to about 0.6% of one or more bile acids or salts thereof;2) at a temperature between about 30.degree. C. and about 42.degree. C.;3) in air or a gas mixture, wherein the gas mixture comprises i) about 5% to about 20% CO.sub.2 with about 80% to about 95% air; ii) about 5% to about 20% CO.sub.2 with about 80% to about 95% N.sub.2 ; or iii) about 5% to about 10% O.sub.2 with about 10% to about 20% CO.sub.2 with about 70% to about 85% N.sub.2 ; and4) a divalent cation chelator selected from the group consisting of 0 to about 100 .mu.M of BAPTA/AM, 0 to about 10 mM of EGTA, and 0 about 100 .mu.M of EGTA/AM, andb) detecting an antibody present in said biological sample binding to the Shigella bacterium or fragment thereof wherein said detecting is by means of an immunoassay.