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Checkit FMD-3ABC

From 1994 to 1997 the Commission of the European Communities sponsored a research program, Concerted Action CT93 0909. The program explored the potential use of tests, based on NSP, for the differentiation between antibodies, induced by vaccination, from antibodies, induced by infection. The conclusions reported in the Proceedings (Proceedings, 1998) stated that the polyprotein 3ABC is the single most reliable indicator of infection.

Bommeli Diagnostics, Switzerland,( www.bommeli.com ), has developed Chekit-FMD-3ABC. This ELISA test kit was developed in collaboration with Intervet International, the World Reference Laboratory in Pirbright (U.K.) and the Instituto Zooprofilattico in Brescia (Italy). The test has been validated in three national reference laboratories.

Conventional test kits i.e.
VN, VP1ELISA:

Chekit-FMD-3ABC:

  • Demonstrate antibodies against FMD without differentiation between infection and vaccination.
  •  The VN-test has to be carried out in high-containment, because it is carried out with FMD -virus. 
  • Are serotype specific. The test will only give a positive result, if the field strain is of the same serotype as the test-strain.     
  • Demonstrates antibodies after infection (3ABC positive) and not after vaccination (3ABC negative) in serum or plasma samples.
  • Provides a rapid, simple, sensitive and specific method for detecting antibodies and can be done in any ELISA laboratory.
  • The test picks up all serotypes of FMD. An ideal test for general screening (eg border control and screening in risk situations).     


Benefits of the marker system (i.e the use of NSP-free vaccines in combination with the 3ABC test):

  1. Eradication of infected herds and the protection of non-infected herds in countries where FMD is endemic.
  2. Vaccination can be used to reduce virus circulation, authorities are still capable of monitoring the spread of the FMD virus.
  3. Massive preventive culling of healthy animals is no longer necessary, culling reduced to infected farms. 
  4. Animals from vaccinated farms not carrying antibodies against the 3ABC protein, do not present a risk for further spread of the disease and can enter the food chain.
  5. The 3ABC marker system allows vaccination of valuable animals (breeding stock, rare breeds, game parks, zoos) without hampering Government disease control schemes.    

For extra information please see the links below.

CHEKIT FMD 3ABC Introduction (62Kb)
  An introduction to the development and use of the marker system.
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A graphic representation of the assay procedure using the Checkit FMD-3ABC (151Kb)
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