The only commercially available kit for the detection of nanobacteria may also be useful in the detection of nanobacterial antigen
The Oxoid range of diagnostic tests has been extended to include a new Elisa kit for the detection of nanobacterial antigen in human blood or plasma.
Intended for use in the research of this emerging infectious agent, the Nanocapture Elisa kit is the only commercially available kit for the detection of nanobacteria and may also be useful in the detection of nanobacterial antigen in other sample types, such as animal serum and cell culture samples.
Nanobacteria are the smallest known self-replicating, cell-walled bacteria, ranging from 20 to 200nm in size - 1/100 to 1/1000 the size of normal bacteria.
Only recently discovered (in the last decade), these minute micro-organisms have been found in human and animal blood, urine and saliva, and are a common cell culture contaminant.
The name Nanobacteria sanguineum distinguishes them from similar structures observed in geological samples.
Nanobacteria have been shown to form a characteristic apatite envelope around each nanobacterial cell.
It is thought that these apatite-producing blood nanobacteria may be involved in the formation of mammalian kidney stones, in the pathogenesis of other calcification diseases, such as dental pulp stone formation, and polycystic kidney disease, and may even have a role in some cancers and autoimmune diseases.
The fastidious and slow-growing nature of nanobacteria (they may divide once in three days) mean that they cannot be detected using standard microbiological culture methods.
The availability of the Nanocapture Elisa kit, however, provides confirmation of the presence of nanobacterial antigen quickly and simply, providing a valuable research tool for further investigations into the presence and role of nanobacteria in human disease.
