The immune response of children to meningococcal lipooligosaccharides during disseminated disease is directed primarily against two monoclonal antibody-defined epitopes.

A human inhibition monoclonal ELISA (HIMELISA) was used to investigate the immune response of infants and children to meningococcal lipooligosaccharide (LOS). Convalescence from disseminated meningococcal disease significantly increased the inhibition by sera of monoclonal antibody (MAb) binding to two of six defined epitopes on the LOS of meningococcal strain 126E, a strain previously shown to express immunogenic LOS epitopes. The inhibited epitopes were defined by MAbs D6A and 6B7, and both were expressed on the 3.6-kDa LOS of strain 126E. The inhibition of the binding of both MAbs by the convalescent sera was similar to that from children who were meningococcal carriers and greater than that by sera obtained from healthy children. These results support the conclusion that the 3.6-kDa LOS molecule of strain 126E expresses two conserved epitopes that are immunogenic in infants and children; this LOS may serve as a vaccine candidate.