Efficiency of a Single well IgG, IgM and IgA Anti T. gondii Fluorimetric Assay for Pre-natal Screening for Congenital Toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis, worldwide protozoan disease, is usually benign, except when acute disease occurs in pregnant women, resulting in fetal infection with deaths or high morbidity after birth. Treatment blocks fetal infection or damage after infection, imposing a quick and effective diagnosis. Maternal infection is mostly asymptomatic thus regular serology are the main tool for detect seroconversion and acute infection in prenatal care. Screening test for specific anti T. gondii IgG, IgM and IgA must be quick, cheaper and available for the prenatal care. Fluorescent solid phase assays appears as a good alternative as they allow one well detection of IgG and IgM aside to allow high throughput in 384 wells. Here, we standardize and analyze a single well anti-T. gondii IgG, IgM and IgA immunosorbent fluorescent assay in a large sample of a public hospital. We construct conjugates for each immunoglobulin with specific fluorophores, which allows concomitant detection in a microplate fluorimeter, with stability and reproducibility, allowing cheaper 384 wells use. Tested in our 600 mother samples from a large public hospital, they presented the same reactivity as standard routine tests, but with adequate IgM and IgA screening, as adequately standardized in house ELISA, while the design of most commercial assays give false positive results. The few TFISA positive IgG, IgM and IgA samples also had low avidity IgG, confirming recent infection. TFISA will help a screening toxoplasmosis in pregnancy program in large cities, with , allowing testing large numbers of samples at low cost and must be considered for other serological purposes.

Automated summary

Toxoplasmosis is a global protozoan disease that can have severe consequences for pregnant women and their fetuses. Quick and effective diagnosis and treatment are crucial to prevent fetal infection. The fluorescent solid phase assay can be used as a screening tool, allowing simultaneous detection of multiple antibodies in a fast and cost-effective manner, making it suitable for large-scale sample testing.