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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, April 2005, p. 1570-1574, Vol. 43, No. 4
0095-1137/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.43.4.1570-1574.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

European Multicenter Study of the LIAISON Automated Diagnostic System for Determination of Toxoplasma gondii-Specific Immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgM and the IgG Avidity Index

WHO/FAO International Centre for Research and Reference on Toxoplasmosis, Staten Serum Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark,¹ Laboratory Centre F82, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden,² Department of Microbiology, University of Sevilla, Seville, Spain,³ Toxoplasma Reference Laboratory, Public Health Laboratory, Singleton Hospital, Swansea, United Kingdom,⁴ Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology of Infection, Charité Medical School, Berlin, Germany,⁵ Infectious Diseases Department, University of Pavia-IRCCS Policlinico S. Matteo, Pavia,⁶ DiaSorin S.p.A., Saluggia, Italy,⁸ Department of Microbiology, Vrije Universiteit, Brussels, Belgium,⁷ Laboratoire de la Toxoplasmose, Institut de Puericulture, Paris, France⁹

Received 5 June 2004/ Returned for modification 16 August 2004/ Accepted 24 November 2004

The LIAISON system is a fully automated system based on chemiluminescence and antigen bound to magnetic microparticles. The system allows fast and precise measurement of Toxoplasma-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgM antibody levels and measurement of the IgG avidity index even at low levels of Toxoplasma-specific IgG antibodies in a single step without manual interference. Seven European centers participated in a multicenter evaluation of the LIAISON system. The sensitivity and specificity of the LIAISON system compared to the Sabin-Feldman dye test were 99.3 and 96.8%, respectively. In a comparison of the LIAISON Toxoplasma-specific IgM assay with an immunosorbent agglutination assay, the LIAISON assay had a sensitivity of 96.7% and a specificity of 95.4%. The LIAISON IgG assay showed agreements of 91, 100, and 100% with the AXSYM IgG (Abbott), VIDAS IgG (bioMérieux), and Platelia IgG (Bio-Rad) assays, respectively. The LIAISON IgM assay showed agreements of 95% with the AXSYM IgM and Platelia IgM assays, 96% with the ISAGA IgM assay (bioMérieux), and 97% with the VIDAS IgM assay. The coefficient of correlation between the LIAISON system and the VIDAS Toxoplasma-specific IgG avidity index was 0.81. By use of the Toxoplasma-specific IgG avidity index assay with specific IgM-positive samples, the diagnosis of infection with Toxoplasma gondii in early pregnancy has been improved significantly. The LIAISON avidity assay is a valuable assay for the exclusion of recently acquired infection with T. gondii (less than 4 months) in pregnant women, and it decreases significantly the necessity for follow-up testing.

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