Diagnostic value of a coagglutination procedure using monoclonal antibodies to Bacteroides gingivalis.

A specific monoclonal antibody against Bacteroides gingivalis was bound to particles coated with protein A and evaluated for use in a coagglutination test. B. gingivalis was the only organism tested which gave a specific positive reaction with the CoA reagent. Subgingival plaque samples were collected from 217 patients diagnosed as having periodontitis. Organisms that gave biochemical reactions which indicated they were B. gingivalis were isolated from eleven of the 217 gingival pockets. These eleven strains were the only organisms which gave a positive reaction using the CoA test.