Objective: To examine the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus-specific antibodies in the sera from non-SARS children.
Methods: Indirect immunofluorescent assay and double-antigen sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were used to detect the virus-specific antibodies in sera of 1,060 non-SARS children in Guangzhou.
Results: All the serum samples from the 1,060 non-SARS children were negative for both IgG and IgM antibodies against SARS coronavirus as determined by indirect immunofluorescent assay, with only two serum samples showing weak positivity for SARS coronavirus-specific antibodies identified by double-antigen sandwich ELISA.
Conclusion: No SARS coronavirus-specific antibody are present in the sera of non-SARS children.