PESQUISA E DOSAGEM DA TOXINA DIITÉRICA NO SANGUE DE PACIENTES DE DIFTERIA POR REAÇÃO DE HEMAGLUTINAÇÃO PASSIVA

Abstract

A procedure was tried for the serological detection of C. diphtheriae toxin in the blood of diphtheria patients through a passive hemagglutination test employing type O, Rh negative human erythrocytes sensitized with diphtheria antitoxin. The method proved simpie, sensitive to the point of detecting as little as 0.00032 Lf of toxin per ml of serum and renders results in about 2 hours. The reaction, designed to reveal the presence of an identifying antigen and not of specific antihodies, offers a great possibility of advantageous application in the diagnosis and in the study of pathogenesis of diphtheria. Similar methods might be applied to other infections with identical aims.