Hemagglutinin-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for antibodies to influenza A and B viruses

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Abstract
An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed to detect antibodies present in human serum or nasal washes directed against influenza A or B hemagglutinin glycoproteins. The assay was modified to measure the Ig isotype specificity of the anti-hemagglutinin response in serum and nasal secretions. In the postinfection sera anti-hemagglutinin of the Ig isotype was predominant; in nasal secretion the antibody was predominantly IgA. The antibody response detected by the ELISA manifested hemagglutinin subgroup specificity. There was a good correlation between the ELISA antibody titer and the hemagglutination inhibition or neutralizing antibody titer. The ELISA was more sensitive than the hemagglutination inhibition assay and the range of antibody titers measurable by ELISA in human serum was from < 1:20 for children who had never experienced influenza infection to 1:400,000 for adults convalescing from a secondary infection. With more sensitive tests to detect antibody to the influenza hemagglutinin it should be possible to determine the relative contribution of local and systemic immunity to resistance to influenza virus infection.