FLUORESCENT ANTIBODY METHODS AND THEIR USE IN MALARIA RESEARCH.

Abstract

In the past research into malaria immunity has been hampered by the relative inefficacy of the standard serological techniques. The newer immunological tools, such as haem-agglutination, immuno-electrophoresis and fluorescent antibody testing, have proved more useful in the study of humoral immunity to malaria.The author reviews the development of immunofluorescent methods and their application to the study of malaria, and describes staining methods and the performance of the fluorescent antibody test. The test is rapid, versatile, specific and relatively simple to perform, and part of its appeal lies in the fact that the results are visually presented and can be recorded by photography.