A Spectrophotometric Method to Precisely Determine Endpoint Titers in Complement Fixation Assays

Since the early 20th century, complement fixation (CF) testing has been used to quantify the humoral response to various pathogens. The qualification of a positive result is based on a subjective determination of 30% lysis of sheep red blood cells, which can lead to variability in the analysis. A spectrophotometric reading of a standard with a known 30% lysis was used to standardize the currently used CF method and tested with controls and patient sera for various fungal assays. By utilizing this method a precise and non-subjective determination of endpoint titers was achieved. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 26:190-193, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.