Leucocyte migration agarose test to study cell-mediated immunity in amoebiasis

Abstract

The leucocyte migration agarose test (LMAT) was used to measure quantitively the magnitude of cell-mediated immunity (CMI) in 35 patients with amoebic liver abscess and 22 healthy controls. LMAT was positive in 65.7% and 85.7% of patients with amoebiasis in the presence of 200 μg and 400 μg of the amoeba extract, respectively, whereas the test in all 22 healthy controls was negative. Time course studies showed that within 10 days after the onset of clinical illness, only 1 of 4 patients was positive. Thereafter the percentage positivity was raised, especially when 400 μg antigen was used. Maximum CMI response was apparent from 31-60 days after the onset of clinical illness. The indirect haemagglutination (IHA) test showed that all patients and 5 of 22 healthy controls were positive. There was no correlation between IHA titers and the magnitude of the LMAT reaction.