A MODIFIED ALKALINE-PHOSPHATASE ENZYME AMPLIFICATION SYSTEM AND ITS APPLICATION IN AN HIV ANTIGEN ELISA

Alkaline phosphatase amplification systems increase the sensitivity of enzyme-linked immunoassays (ELISAs). Here we describe a modified method by which levamisole is a component of the substrate buffer. This increases sensitivity by reducing the signal from non-specific alkaline phosphatases. The modified procedure was applied to an 'in house' HIV-1 p24 antigen capture assay and was shown to increase the sensitivity 4-fold as compared to the unmodified system. The performance of the modified amplification system is comparable to that of commercially available systems.