Serology of tuberculosis. I. Standardization of passive haemagglutination test for the measurement of antibodies to Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

A passive haemagglutination (PHA) test has been described for the measurement of antibodies to M. tuberculosis (H37Rv). Red cells stabilized successively with pyruvic aldehyde and glutaraldehyde were sensitized with soluble antigens from M. tuberculosis and used as reagents in the PHA test. In mice and rabbits immunized with M. tuberculosis antigens, the PHA test could reliably measure antibody response, following both primary and secondary immune stimuli. The sensitized red cells used for the PHA test were found to retain their haemagglutinating potency for 8 weeks and 4 months when stored appropriately at +4 degrees C and -20 degrees C, respectively. The test was found to be satisfactory in terms of sensitivity, simplicity and reproducibility.