Haemophilus influenzae type b Assay

Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) is an encapsulated bacterium which can cause a range of conditions including meningitis, septicaemia and pneumonia. Hib infections were a major cause of bacterial meningitis in children under the age of 5 until vaccinations with the protein-conjugated Hib vaccine were introduced.

The Hib vaccine is conjugated to a protein in order to elicit an immune response in healthy infants whose immune system is still developing. It is important to remember that a protein conjugated polysaccharide vaccine such as the Hib vaccine behaves physiologically like a protein antigen such as Tetanus toxoid.

This assay is therefore intended to measure the level of specific anti Hib total IgG in serum. Microwells are coated with the Hib capsular polysaccharide antigen conjugated to human serum albumin.

Hib Measuring Range (mg/L) Analytical Sensitivity (mg/L)
IgG 0.11 - 9.0 0.096

Antibody avidity

Antibody avidity refers to the functional binding strength of an antibody and the target antigen and is therefore dependent on both the affinity of the binding and the number of epitopes involved. This can have important implications with regard to the full evaluation of an individual's immune response, for example if the B memory cells of the individual have been fully primed following vaccination and whether this response will confer immunity.
The VaccZyme™ Hib IgG EIA Accessory Pack is designed to be used in conjunction with the standard VaccZyme™ Hib IgG EIA kit for the assessment of the relative avidity of specific Hib IgG antibodies.
An adaptation of the standard EIA protocol is used for this assessment, and the relative avidity is expressed as a Binding Index.

Description Pack Code
VaccZyme™ Hib IgG 96 tests MK016
VaccZyme™ Hib IgG Accessory Pack* 48 tests MK116

* Research use only

 

VaccZyme™ is a tradmark of The Binding Site Ltd, Birmingham, UK