Evaluation of an iELISA for detection and quantification of rabies antibodies in domestic dog sera

Lugelo, A., Hampson, K. , McElhinney, L. M. and Lankester, F. (2023) Evaluation of an iELISA for detection and quantification of rabies antibodies in domestic dog sera. Vaccine, 41(44), pp. 6565-6571. (doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.09.004) (PMID:37716829)

Abstract

Many rabies endemic-countries have recognized rabies as a public health problem that can be eliminated. As a result, some countries have started implementing small-scale vaccination programs with the aim of scaling them up. Post-vaccination serological monitoring is crucial to assess the efficacy of these programs. The recommended serological tests, the rapid fluorescent focus inhibition test, and the fluorescent antibody virus neutralization (FAVN) are accurate; however, the procedures require considerable expertise and must be carried out in high containment facilities, which are often not available in rabies endemic countries. Given these constraints, enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) have been considered as alternative methods to neutralization tests. This is the first study to evaluate, under field conditions, the performance of the commercial rabies indirect-ELISA (iELISA), the PlateliaTM Rabies II kit ad usum Veterinarium kit, using sera from domestic dogs. Serum samples were collected from two groups of community dogs in northern Tanzania: i) dogs with no history of vaccination against rabies (n = 100) and ii) dogs vaccinated with the Nobivac Canine Rabies® vaccine (n = 101) four weeks previously. When compared to the gold standard FAVN test, the iELISA was found to be 99% specific and 98% sensitive and there was a significant correlation between the two tests (p < 0.001, r = 0.92). Given these findings, we conclude that the PlateliaTM Rabies II kit ad usum Veterinarium can be considered a valuable tool for the rapid assessment of vaccination status of animals in vaccination programs.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This study was funded by the Department of Health and Human Services of the National Institutes of Health [R01AI141712] and MSD Animal Health. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. KH is funded by Wellcome [207569/Z/17/Z]. LM is funded by Defra, the Scottish Government and Welsh Government, through grants SV3500 and SE0433.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Lankester, Dr Felix and Lugelo, Dr Ahmed and Hampson, Professor Katie
• Authors: Lugelo, A., Hampson, K., McElhinney, L. M., and Lankester, F.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
• Journal Name: Vaccine
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 0264-410X
• ISSN (Online): 1873-2518
• Published Online: 15 September 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2023 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Vaccine 41:6565-6571
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License

Project Code	Award No	Project Name	Principal Investigator	Funder's Name	Funder Ref	Lead Dept
301620		The Science of Rabies Elimination	Katie Hampson	Wellcome Trust (WELLCOTR)	207569/Z/17/Z	Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine