Abstract: An evaluating method of a testing element having an immobilized antigen or antibody on an immobilizing carrier thereof, which immobilized antigen or antibody has yet to react with another antigen or antibody, which involves contacting the testing element with a solution containing an antibody or antigen reactive with the immobilized antigen or antibody, specifically binding a labelling compound to the reactive antibody or antigen to thereby cause a color-developing reaction of the labelling compound, and determining an amount of the antigen or antibody immobilized on the testing element as a function of a level of produced color. Using this evaluation method, a quantitative determination of the immobilized antigen or antibody can be carried out, and thus the performance of the testing element for antigens or antibodies can be evaluated.

Abstract: The present invention provides agents for the detection of urease from H. pylori, and agents and epitopes for use in the treatment or diagnosis of infection due to H. pylori, as well as diagnostic tests and kits therefor and the use of the agents and epitopes in the manufacture of medicaments.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for making a selenium-carrier conjugate by covalently attaching (i) an organic selenium compound selected from the group consisting of RSeH, RSeR, RSeR', RSeSeR and RSeSeR', wherein R and R' are each an aliphatic residue containing at least one reactive group selected from the group consisting of aldehyde, amino, alcoholic, phosphate, sulfate, halogen or phenolic reactive groups and combinations thereof, to (ii) a carrier having a constituent capable of forming a covalent bond with said reactive groups of said selenium compound to produce a selenium-carrier conjugate which is capable of specific attachment to a target site. The carrier may be a protein, such as an antibody specific to a bacteria, virus, protozoa, or cell antigen, including without limitation, cell surface antigens, a peptide, carbohydrate, lipid, vitamin, drug, lectin, plasmid, liposome, nucleic acid or a non-metallic implantable device, such as an intraocular implant or a vascular shunt.

Abstract: Nucleic acid and protein compositions are provided from B. pertussis which may find use in diagnosis, prevention and therapy of whooping cough. Particularly, an open reading frame encoding filamentous hemagglutinin precursors provided, with the intact protein for the filamentous hemagglutinin portion thereof, can be expressed in a wide variety of hosts, for use in the production of antibodies, for immunodiagnosis or therapy, or as vaccines for prophylactic purposes.

Abstract: A method to produce arrays of compounds for concurrent testing is described. Two formats are described using porous rods or porous sheet materials. In one format the compounds of the array are immobilized to porous rod elements. In the second format the compounds are immobilized as lines on a sheet of porous material. In both cases, a bundle is formed by radial compression of the rods or spiral wrapping of the sheet. A sheath is applied to the bundle and arrays are cut as slabs. Each synthesis or application step to create an array element is used to fabricate multiple arrays. Relatively high density arrays can be produced with current printing technologies. The method is particularly suited to mass production of arrays.

Abstract: Disclosed is a V. cholerae cell containing a DNA encoding a fusion polypeptide that includes a heterologous antigenic polypeptide sequence such as a portion of C. difficile toxin A. The fusion polypeptide also includes one of the following: (i) an E. coli hemolysin A subunit (wich is coexpressed with sequences encoding hemolysin B and D subunits); (ii) a secretion signal sequence and cholera toxin A2 subunit (which is coexpressed with cholera toxin B subunit); or (iii) cholera toxin B subunit.

Abstract: Enterococcus spp. 1357, Lactobacillus acidophilus V20 and Lactococcus lactis 1370, lactic acid bacterial strains having a potent and lasting inhibitory activity against the formation of glucan and dental plaque in human mouths.

Abstract: The present invention is directed towards a novel composition which is a genetically distinct mutant of E. coli heat-labile enterotoxin (LT). Specifically, the mutant LT designated LT(R192G/L211A) is modified by two amino acid substitutions, i.e., the arginine at amino acid position 192 is replaced by glycine and the leucine at amino acid position 211 is replaced by alanine. The invention relates to compositions and methods for use of the novel double mutant of LT as an adjuvant.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for making a selenium-carrier conjugate by covalently attaching (i) an organic selenium compound selected from the group consisting of RSeH, RSeR, RSeR', RSeSeR and RSeSeR', wherein R and R' are each an aliphatic residue containing at least one reactive group selected from the group consisting of aldehyde, amino, alcoholic, carboxylic, phosphate, sulfate, halogen or phenolic reactive groups and combinations thereof, to (ii) a carrier having a constituent capable of forming a covalent bond with said reactive groups of said selenium compound to produce a selenium-carrier conjugate which is capable of specific attachment to a target site. The carrier may be a protein, such as an antibody specific to a bacteria, virus, protozoa, or cell antigen, including without limitation, cell surface antigens, a peptide, carbohydrate, lipid, vitamin, drug, lectin, plasmid, liposome, nucleic acid or a non-metallic implantable device, such as an intraocular implant or a vascular shunt.

Abstract: The present invention includes a process for separating cells from a liquid media. In broadest terms, the separation process of the present invention is a process for separating cells from a liquid containing cells. The process comprises the steps of: (a) bringing the liquid containing the cells into contact with one or more microbial polysaccharide and a fibrous material so as to adsorb the cells onto the fibrous material; and (b) separating the liquid from the fibrous material so as to remove the cells from the liquid. The process of the present invention may be used to remove cells from any liquid, but such liquids typically will be aqueous solutions, such as growth media, biological fluids, diagnostic samples, aqueous test samples, etc.

Abstract: Avidin-binding azo reagents which alter the spectrophotometric properties of avidin and the use of such reagents in homogeneous assays are described.

Abstract: An immunoassay method in which blood can be measured even without pretreatment by a centrifuge etc. In the present invention, antibodies or antigens in a sample are subjected to agglutination reaction with insoluble carriers onto which antigens or antibodies specifically reacting with the antibodies or antigens in the sample have been imrobilized and the resulting agglutination mixture is determined for the change in its absorbance or in its scattered light by irradiation with light, wherein said sample is whole blood and the whole blood is forcibly lysed.

Abstract: Methods and compositions are provided for identifying a group A Streptococcus in any of a variety of physiological samples, such as blood, saliva, throat swabs, cerebrospinal fluid, brocheolar lavage material, and biopsy material. The positions used include an extracellular cysteine protease or a fragment thereof, obtainable from S. pyogenes and containing at least one conserved epitope, or nucleic acid encoding the cysteine protease or fragment thereof. The compositions also find use in eliciting a protective immune response against a group A streptococcus infection.

Abstract: An immunogenic composition, characterized in that it comprises an adenyl cyclase-hemolysin (Ac-Hly) protein, or an immunogenic portion of this AC-Hly, of a strain of Bordetella chosen from B. pertussis, B. parapertussis or B. bronchiseptica, and in that it comprises, in addition, a bacterial extract containing the expression products of the vrg genes of a strain of Bordetella chosen from B. pertussis, B. parapertussis or B. bronchiseptica, or a portion of these expression products which is sufficient to induce an immune response in a host to which the extract might be administered.

Abstract: It has been discovered that a vaccine comprised of fimbrin, a filamentous protein derived from the bacterial surface appendages of non-typable Haemophilus influenzae is useful in studying, preventing or reducing the severity of, otitis media. The gene sequence of the DNA coding for fimbrin and the amino acid sequence of fimbrin have also been determined. Vectors containing DNA coding for fimbrin have also been developed, and transformants have been prepared which contain such vectors and which express such DNA and provide a source of pure fimbrin.

Abstract: Mutations in the spoIII gene of B. subtilis abolish sporulation by preventing partition of a prespore chromosome into the small polar prespore compartment. The invention provides a Bacillus strain having a chromosome with two reporter genes each linked to a promoter and responsive to the action of .sigma..sup.F during sporulation, one located inside and the other located outside a segment of the DNA that is trapped in a prespore compartment; and use of the strain in a method of determining whether an agent inhibits SpoIIIE function in Bacillus species.

Abstract: A hemoglobin derivative-containing sample is treated with a treating reagent containing 2-butanol and then immunologically analyzed to determine the quantity of the hemoglobin derivative. By the treatment with 2-butanol, the immunological determination for the hemoglobin derivative, particularly HbA.sub.1c, can be attained with high sensitivity by a simple procedure. Since 2-butanol-containing treating reagent does not affect the enzymatic activity, the homogeneous enzyme immunoassay with high sensitivity is realized.

Abstract: The present invention provides methods for isolating biological target materials, particularly nucleic acids, such as DNA or RNA or hybrid molecules of DNA and RNA, from other substances in a medium using silica magnetic particles. The methods of the present invention involve forming a complex of the silica magnetic particles and the biological target material in a mixture of the medium and particles, separating the complex from the mixture using external magnetic force, and eluting the biological target material from the complex. The preferred embodiments of magnetic silica particles used in the methods and kits of the present invention are capable of forming a complex with at least 2 .mu.g of biological target material per milligram of particle, and of releasing at least 60% of the material from the complex in the elution step of the method.

Abstract: Mucosal administration, particularly intranasally, of killed whole pneumococci, lysate of pneumococci and isolated and purified PspA, as well as immunogenic fragments thereof, particularly when administered with cholera toxin B subunit, provides protection in animals against pneumococcal colonization and systemic infection. The ability to elicit protection against pneumococcal colonization in a host prevents carriage among immunized individuals, which can lead to elimination of disease from the population as a whole.

Abstract: The invention provides a vaccine for immunizing poultry and other animals against infection by a gram-negative bacteria, and a method of immunizing an animal using the vaccine. The vaccine may contain purified siderophore receptor proteins derived from a single strain or species of gram-negative bacteria or other organism, which are cross-reactive with siderophores produced by two or more strains, species or genera of gram-negative bacteria. The invention further provides a process for isolating and purifying the siderophore receptor proteins, and for preparing a vaccine containing the proteins. Also provided is a method for diagnosing gram-negative sepsis.