Tachypleus lysate test for endotoxin in patients with gram negative bacterial infections

Abstract

Amoebocyte lysate from the horseshoe crab (Tachypleus gigas) which abounds in the Gulf of Thailand was used to detect endotoxin in patients with Gram-negative bacteremia, in patients with Gram-positive bacterial infections as well as in the control. The Tachypleus lysate test (TLT) was positive in 94.4% of 36 patients with Gram-negative bacteremia before initiation of antibiotic therapy. Only 4% of 50 healthy individuals were positive and all 7 patients with Gram-positive bacterial infections were negative. The threshold sensitivity of TLT was 0.625 μg endotoxin per ml of the plasma. In comparison with the commercial Limulus lysate test (LLT), the TLT was slightly more sensitive in exhibiting higher grade of reaction, even though the threshold sensitivity was the same.