	US 7,572,597 B2
	Diagnostics method
Ajit Lalvani, Oxford (United Kingdom); and Katie Ewer, Oxford (United Kingdom)
Assigned to Isis Innovation Limited, Oxford (United Kingdom)
Appl. No. 10/520,084 PCT Filed Jul. 07, 2003, PCT No. PCT/GB03/02936 § 371(c)(1), (2), (4) Date May 06, 2005, PCT Pub. No. WO2004/005925, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 15, 2004.
Claims priority of application No. 0215710.5 (GB), filed on Jul. 05, 2002.
Prior Publication US 2005/0208594 A1, Sep. 22, 2005
Int. Cl. G01N 33/554 (2006.01)

U.S. Cl. 435—7.32 [435/4; 435/7.1; 435/7.92; 530/300; 530/350; 424/248.1]

6 Claims

1. A method of diagnosing in an individual a recent exposure to M. tuberculosis, said method comprising:

(a) providing a T cell-containing sample from said individual;

(b) contacting different aliquots of said sample separately with antigen compositions comprising either whole ESAT-6, or peptide epitopes derived from ESAT-6 that are 8 to 29 amino acids in length, in ELISPOT assays in order to determine the frequency of antigen-responsive T cells which have been induced to secrete a cytokine; and

(c) evaluating the responsive T cells in each separate ELISPOT assay, wherein a positive response using whole ESAT-6 and a negative response using said peptide epitopes indicates that the individual has recently been exposed to M. tuberculosis.