Serum antibodies to cross-reactive Neisseria outer membrane antigens in healthy persons and patients with meningococcal disease.

Outer membranes (OMs) were prepared from the Neisseria meningitidis (Nm) strain 44/76, N. gonorrhoeae (Ng) NRL 8658, and N. lactamica (N1) ATCC 23970. Paired serum samples from 16 patients with serogroup B Nm disease and single samples from 30 blood donors were tested for IgG antibody levels against the three OMs in indirect ELISA, before and after absorption of the sera with N1 OM. Immunoblot analysis was used to identify OM target antigens for cross-reacting and strain-specific antibodies. Most of the Nm- and NG-antibodies in sera from healthy adults were directed against OM antigens shared by the three Neisseria strains. Nm disease induced antibody formation against common Neisseria antigens, identified as the H.8 antigen and LPS determinants, against LPS determinants shared only by the Nm and Ng strains and against a variety of Nm-specific OM antigens. Very low levels of Nm-specific antibodies characterized the Nm patients in the acute phase. Also, the results indicate that the OM ELISA which has been used for the diagnosis of Nm disease, would be more useful if antibodies against common Neisseria antigens were removed from the sera before testing.