Serological Differentiation of Infections with Dengue Virus Serotypes 1 to 4 by Using Recombinant Antigens

The B domains of dengue virus serotypes 1 to 4 were expressed in Escherichia coli. The purified proteins were applied to immunoblot strips to detect serotype-specific antibodies in paired serum samples from 41 patients with primary and secondary dengue infections. A close correlation between the results obtained with the immunoblot strips and by type-specific reverse transcription-PCR (T. Laue, P. Emmerich, and H. Schmitz, J. Clin. Microbiol. 37:2543-2547, 1999) was observed.