ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the commercially available immunologic assays for the quantitation of aminoglycosides and vancomycin, the two most heavily monitored groups of antimicrobial agents, comparative studies, cost-effectiveness, and clinical indications for monitoring. It provides information which will be useful for the microbiologist faced with deciding which of the many available systems would be best suited for use in the microbiology laboratory. All immunoassays depend upon the noncovalent, reversible binding of the antigen by specific antibodies. The kinetic approach is much faster than the end-point approach and has been useful in the development of several new immunoassays. By substitution of a fluorescent dye for the radioactive label, assays similar to commonly used radioimmunoassays can be used for quantitation of aminoglycosides and vancomycin in serum. The principal reagents for Fluorescence Polarization Immunoassay (FPIA) are fluorescent-labeled antigen and antibodies specific for the antigen. The Abbott TDX®system uses FPIA to quantitate the aminoglycosides and vancomycin in serum and other body fluids.
