An enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for serodiagnosis of Taenia hydatigena metacestode infection in sheep.

Serological examination of 500 sheep serum samples obtained from cairo Abattoir during the period from January 1997 to September 1997 using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), revealed that 151 samples (30.2%) were seropositive for Taenia hydatigena metacestodes with optical density mean value 1.09 +/- 0.09, 0.56 +/- 0.09 and 0.31 +/- 0.04 for heavy, moderate and light infected animals respectively. Out of 100 positive animals at postmortem (PM), 91 were seropositive with ELISA test with a sensitivity rate 91%. Sixty animals (15%) from 400 negative ones at PM showed positive reaction, while 340 animals (85%) showed negative reaction with ELISA test.