Detection of serum immunoglobulin M to human cytomegalovirus by western blotting correlates better with virological data than detection by conventional enzyme immunoassay.

Western blotting (immunoblotting) with proteins separated from purified human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) particles (viral WB) has repeatedly been shown to be a reliable and sensitive method for detecting HCMV-specific immunoglobulin M (IgM). The aim of the present work was to determine whether IgM detected by viral WB correlates with virological diagnosis better than conventional enzyme immunoassay (conv-EIA). The presence of an active HCMV infection was documented on the basis of isolation of virus from urine and/or saliva and on the basis of antigenemia and/or PCR with polymorphonuclear leukocytes for immunocompetent and immunocompromised subjects, respectively. The agreement observed between IgM detected by viral WB and the results obtained by virological detection of HCMV was significantly higher (88.7%) than the agreement of IgM detected by conv-EIA and virological results (67.5%).