ELISA: a tool for the clinical microbiologist.

The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), with its ability to detect both antigens and antibodies, is finding an increasing number of applications in the clinical microbiology laboratory. This paper describes the basic steps common to all ELISA procedures, as well as the specific variations in technique. Applications of ELISA techniques to the clinical microbiology laboratory are reviewed, and commercially available materials and systems for elisa are discussed.