Effect versus affect; blew versus blue; principle versus principal are among the terms that get confused at times. Add to that list antibody versus antigen for animal health pros. Claire L. Fellman, DVM, and Todd Archer, DVM, MS, DACVIM, Mississippi State University, answer the question, “What are the differences between antibody and antigen tests, and which test should I choose?”
Source: Clinician’s Brief, May 2017.
Antigens are substances (often proteins or carbohydrates) capable of inciting an adaptive immune response, which often results in the production of specific antibodies. Adaptive immunity is the specific counterpart to innate immunity that involves the response to antigens by lymphocytes. Immunologic tests can either use antibodies to identify antigens circulating in the blood or detect patient antibodies that have formed in response to a current or previous disease.
INSIGHTS: This article provides a brief introduction to immunodiagnostic tests, including immunofluorescence assays, ELISAs, immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry.