Re: ELISA test help

Hi


This is an antibody test. The principle is simple. If you were exposed to a parasite in the past, or presently have an infection, the test uses "antigens" or molecules extracted from a specific or any number of known parasites (or other target\s)that will clump with your antibodies if positive.

If you are fighting, or have fought a parasite which the test has the molecules for, you will have antibodies to certain complement molecules from the offender.

These will bind in a closed system, and produce a marker, which tells the lab it is positive.

The problem is, this is a qualitative test, meaning it tells the lab you have been exposed, but not when, or if it is very active. For this, you would need a "quantitative" test, showing the level of antibody activity. This can show the difference between past and active infection.

Another problem with this test, is parasites often mutate their antigens, and sometimes they share antigens with other less harmful organisms. This is a problem with the Lyme Disease testing because there are many false positives and negatives due to other bacteria sharing antigens with similarities to spirochetes.