A mouse monoclonal antibody to Vi antigen & its usefulness in the serotyping of Salmonella.

Three IgM monoclonal antibodies (MoAb) designated as MK2, MK3 and MK5 and specific for the Vi antigen of Salmonella typhi have been produced. These antibodies recognise the epitope involving the O-acetyl group of Vi antigen. In slide agglutination tests, these MoAb's agglutinated all 11 isolates of S. typhi but not the other Gram negative bacteria. This selective reactivity makes them better reagents for the identification of S. typhi than the conventional polyclonal antiserum.