Automation of an absorbed enzyme immunoassay for the detection of Mycobacterium paraturberculosis antibodies for an eradication program

As part of an ongoing Johne's disease eradication program by the state of Victoria, Australia, the Victorian Veterinary pathology Services (VVPS) has been involved in testing over 150 000 cattle samples per year for the presence of Johne's-specific antibodies. The Parachek kit (CSL, Victoria, Australia) has been used throughout the project. This method was automated using a Rosys 3300 and a Plate 7 (Dade/Behring Diagnostics) to pipette samples and the Behring ELISA Processor 3 (Dade/Behring Diagnostics) to wash EIA plates, add reagents, reads absorbances and perform data reduction of the results. Automation saved about 15 h of labour per day, allowing one staff member to analyse up to 2000 samples pel 8 h shift compared to 800 samples using a manual protocol. Problems that were encountered include pipetting issues, the reading of the Paracheck endpoint, and excessive packaging of the kit. Maintenance, calibration and control of the analysers were an integral part of the process. VVPS, working in conjunction with CSL, suggested modification to the Parachek kit to make automation of the product more convenient. The approach resulted in a change in reagent volume and a reduction in packaging that reduced the cost of the test by 25%. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V All rights reserved.