serology
As Serology refers to the science and study of the antigen - antibody reactions, provided they in vitro expire. It is therefore a branch of immunology . Forensic serology has been a branch of serology since the beginning of the 20th century .
Serology deals, among other things, with the development of specific detection of antigens and antibodies. This is possible because antigen-antibody reactions are very specific . On the one hand, this is used to identify antigen carriers (such as those infected by pathogens); on the other hand, the corresponding diseases are diagnosed by detecting certain antibodies in the blood . There are two options
for serostatus :
- Individuals are referred to as seropositive if antibodies against a certain antigen are found.
- If the result is negative, the individual is seronegative (for example, if no rheumatoid factor is detectable).
However, there are limits to the detection of antibodies due to two temporal factors: On the one hand, the infected organism must have started to form antibodies, and on the other hand, they must be present in sufficient concentration.
See also
- Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay , in short: ELISA
- Paleoserology
- Seroconversion
Individual evidence
- ↑ Jürgen Thorwald: At the limits of the perceptible or The way of forensic serology. In: Jürgen Thorwald: The hour of the detectives. Becomes and worlds of criminology. Droemer Knaur, Zurich and Munich 1966, pp. 31–285.