PROTECTIVE ACTIVITY OF A HUMAN RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUS IMMUNE GLOBULIN PREPARED FROM DONORS SCREENED BY MICRONEUTRALIZATION ASSAY

To explore the feasibility of preparing a human immune globulin specific for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) by screening plasma donors, the ability of seven RSV antibody assays to identify plasma-yielding IgG with high virus-neutralizing and animal-protective activities was compared. IgG prepared from plasma units selected by microneutralization assay had significantly higher activity in protecting mice from respiratory RSV challenge than did IgGs prepared from plasmas selected by three direct ELISAs using purified F protein, G protein, or RSV-infected cell lysate, by two competitive ELISAs with RSV neutralizing monoclonal antibodies directed to the F2 or F3 epitopes of the F protein, or by plaque reduction neutralization. Relative to IgG made from unselected plasma, microneutralization-screened IgG was enriched fivefold by plaque-reduction neutralization assays done with or without complement. The microneutralization assay identified RSV antibodies with highest animal protective activity. This assay will be useful for identifying plasma donors for the preparation of a human immune globulin with high protective activity against RSV and deserves further evaluation for prediction of protective antibody concentrations in children.