Comparative Characteristics of the Diagnostic Potential of Mycobacterial Synthetic Antigens for the Seroriagnosis of Lepra and Tuberculosis

Abstract

Seven artificial mycobacterial antigens have been synthesized via the conjugation of synthetic carbohydrate epitopes of M. leprae phenolic glycolipid (PGL-1) and M. tuberculosis lipoarabinomannan (LAM) with bovine serum albumin (BSA). Each antigen has a different number of carbohydrate epitopes with a different structure and input sequence of the sugar residues. According to the serum reactivity, only three synthesized antigens can be useful for serodiagnosis of mycobacteriosis: (1) the antigen based on a disaccharide derivative of PGL-1: (DMG–Rha-AEP)-[BSA]; (2) the antigen based on a disaccharide fragment of PGL-1 and a hexasaccharide fragment of LAM: (DMG–Rha-AEP)-[BSA]–(Ara6-EG6); (3) the antigen based on the LAM diarabinofuranosyl fragment (Ara2-AEP)–[BSA].