Serum antibody to Pseudomonas aeruginosa exotoxin measured by a passive hemagglutination assay

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Abstract
A passive hemagglutination (PHA) assay for antibody to P. aeruginosa exotoxin is described which utilizes chromic chloride-treated ovine erythrocytes coated with purified toxin. PHA antitoxin titers correlated well with those obtained by a cytotoxicity neutralization assay, whereas the PHA assay was 4-8 times as sensitive. The mean serum PHA titer of 16 patients convalescing from recent pseudomonas infections (log2 = 9.4 .+-. 3.9) was significantly higher (P < 0.001) than that of 17 healthy controls (2.8 .+-. 2.6), and 4-fold or greater rises were demonstrated in 5 of 7 patients examined sequentially. The lower levels of PHA antibody in sera from 11 of 17 controls suggested the acquisition of antitoxin secondary to asymptomatic infection.