Comparison of three enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays suitable for the detection of antibodies to rotaviruses in epidemiological studies.

Three enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays which use commercially available reagents are presented as alternatives to the complement fixation procedure for large-scale detection of rotavirus antibodies. Comparison of results in 75 sera tested by indirect, competition and blocking ELISA and by complement fixation demonstrated that the ELISA techniques were rapid, easy to perform and 26 to 29 times more sensitive than complement fixation; furthermore the ELISA techniques permitted extrapolation of an approximate titer from a single dilution test. Although it could detect class-specific antibodies, the indirect assay was less sensitive, specific and reproducible than competition and blocking assays; furthermore the titer extrapolated from a single dilution test in the indirect assay had a lower correlation with the end-point titer than in the other two methods. Competition ELISA was easier to perform whereas blocking ELISA had better reproducibility and serotype studies were possible with it using faecal rotavirus isolates. The respective ELISA technique can be recommended for use in seroepidemiologic surveys according to the study needs.