Carbon immunoassay--a simple and rapid serodiagnostic test for feline toxoplasmosis.

A serodiagnostic test, simpler and more rapid to perform than traditional methods, was sought to identify Toxoplasma gondii antibody in research cats. The reliability and sensitivity of the direct and indirect carbon immunoassay (CIA) tests were compared to each other and to the indirect immunofluorescent antibody (IFA) test. The three tests were used to detect the presence or absence of T. gondii antibody in the sera of 94 cats. The results of this study show that the CIA tests correlate with one another and the IFA test nearly 99%, indicating they are highly reliable. Comparison of titers of the positive sera indicate a high degree of sensitivity as well.