ABSTRACT
Human cytomegalovirus [HCMV] infection may cause severe outcomes in transplants and pregnant women. Diagnosis of CMV infections by using serological detection of CMV specific antibodies varies widely due to different antigen compositions in the diagnostic tests. The aim of this study was to identify the reactive peptides of CMV for CMV-lgM and -lgG detection. The reactivity of peptides [peptide 1: amino acids 595-614 of phosphoprotein 150 [pp150], peptide2: amino acids 1024-1048 of pp150, peptide3: amino acids 798-805 of C-terminal part of glycoprotein B [gp55], peptide 4: amino acids 68-81 of N-terminal part of glycoprotein B [gp 116], and peptide 5: amino acids 29-48 of glycoprotein H] as epitopes was determined in ELISA, using renal transplant recipients' sera [n=84] with high titers of CMV-lgM and healthy individuals' sera [n=87] with high titers of CMV-lgG antibodies. Amino acids 595-614 and 1024-1048 of pp150 had a high reactivity [83.3% and 88.0%] with renal transplant recipients' sera while the other peptides did not. The amino acids 68-81 of gp116 reacted with 81.6% of the healthy individuals' sera but the other amino acids showed low reactivity with these sera. Amino acids 595-614 and 1024-1048 of pp150 and amino acids 68-81 of N-terminal part of gp 116 could be considered in recombinant protein construction for detection of CMV-lgM and -lgG antibodies