Multiepitope synthetic peptide and recombinant protein for the detection of antibodies to Trypanosoma cruzi in patients with treated or untreated Chagas' disease

A tetrapeptide and a recombinant protein, each representing 4 immunodominant epitopes of Trypanosoma cruzi, were tested by use of ELISA for the detection of serum antibodies. Sera from individuals with Chagas' disease, including persons untreated and successfully or unsuccessfully treated, were tested. These assays detected antibody in 100% of the parasitemias, The antibody reactivity decreased based on the success of treatment. Higher sensitivity was observed for tetrapeptide/recombinant protein assays than for lysate-based ELISA, and specificity was improved, particularly with Leishmania sera. The results indicate that multiepitope antigens provide a more sensitive and specific alternative to lysate for detection of anti-T. cruzi antibodies, as required for developing blood screening assays.