ELISA test

• What is the ELISA test?


  a medical diagnostic test that uses antibodies
• what does elisa stad for?

  enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay
• what does the ELISA allow you to see?


  if a patient has any antibodies to a certain antigen or any antigen to a certain antibody
• what can ELISA be used to test for?

  pathogenic infections or allergies and just about anything you can make an antibody for
• what is used in an ELISA test?

  an antibody which has an enzyme attached to it

  this enzyme can react with a substrate to produce a coloured product

  this causes the solution in the reaction vessel to change colour
• what happens if there is a colour change?


  if there is a colour change it demonstrates that the antigen or antibody of interest is present in the sample being tested (eg blood plasma