immunology-Infectious Diseases Flashcards
- Which serum antibody response usually
characterizes the primary (early) stage of syphilis?
A. Antibodies against syphilis are undetectable
B. Detected 1–3 weeks after appearance of the
primary chancre
C. Detected in 50% of cases before the primary
chancre disappears
D. Detected within 2 weeks after infection
B.. Detected 1–3 weeks after appearance of the
primary chancre
- What substance is detected by the rapid plasma
reagin (RPR) and Venereal Disease Research
Laboratory (VDRL) tests for syphilis?
A. Cardiolipin
B. Anticardiolipin antibody
C. Anti-T. pallidum antibody
D. Treponema pallidum
B. Anticardiolipin antibody
- What type of antigen is used in the RPR card test?
A. Live treponemal organisms
B. Killed suspension of treponemal organisms
C. Cardiolipin
D. Tanned sheep cells
C. Cardiolipin
- Which of the following is the most sensitive test to
detect congenital syphilis?
A. VDRL
B. RPR
C. Microhemagglutinin test for T. pallidum
(MHA-TP)
D. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
D. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
- A biological false-positive reaction is least likely
with which test for syphilis?
A. VDRL
B. Fluorescent T. pallidum antibody absorption test
(FTA-ABS)
C. RPR
D. All are equally likely to detect a false-positive
result
B. Fluorescent T. pallidum antibody absorption test
(FTA-ABS)
- A 12-year old girl has symptoms of fatigue and a
localized lymphadenopathy. Laboratory tests reveal
a peripheral blood lymphocytosis, a positive RPR,
and a positive spot test for IM. What test should
be performed next?
A. HIV test by ELISA
B. VDRL
C. Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) specific antigen test
D. Treponema pallidum particle agglutination
(TP-PA) test
D. Treponema pallidum particle agglutination
(TP-PA) test
- Which test is most likely to be positive in the
tertiary stage of syphilis?
A. FTA-ABS
B. RPR
C. VDRL
D. Reagin screen test (RST)
A. FTA-ABS
- What is the most likely interpretation of the
following syphilis serological results?
RPR: reactive; VDRL: reactive; MHA-TP: nonreactive
A. Neurosyphilis
B. Secondary syphilis
C. Syphilis that has been successfully treated
D. Biological false positive
D. Biological false positive
- Which specimen is the sample of choice to
evaluate latent or tertiary syphilis?
A. Serum sample
B. Chancre fluid
C. CSF
D. Joint fluid
C. CSF
- Interpret the following quantitative RPR test
results.
RPR titer: weakly reactive 1:8; reactive 1:8–1:64
A. Excess antibody, prozone effect
B. Excess antigen, postzone effect
C. Equivalence of antigen and antibody
D. Impossible to interpret; testing error
A. Excess antibody, prozone effect
- Tests to identify infection with HIV fall into
which three general classification types of tests?
A. Tissue culture, antigen, and antibody tests
B. Tests for antigens, antibodies, and nucleic acid
C. DNA probe, DNA amplification, and Western
blot tests
D. ELISA, Western blot, and Southern blot tests
B. Tests for antigens, antibodies, and nucleic acid
- Which tests are considered screening tests
for HIV?
A. ELISA, 4th generation, and rapid antibody tests
B. Immunofluorescence, Western blot,
radioimmuno-precipitation assay
C. Culture, antigen capture assay, DNA
amplification
D. Reverse transcriptase and messenger RNA
(mRNA) assay
A. ELISA, 4th generation, and rapid antibody tests
- Which tests are considered confirmatory tests
for HIV?
A. ELISA and rapid antibody tests
B. Western blot test, HIC-1,2 differentiation assays,
and polymerase chain reaction
C. Culture, antigen capture assay, polymerase chain
reaction
D. Reverse transcriptase and mRNA assay
B. Western blot test, HIC-1,2 differentiation assays,
and polymerase chain reaction
- Which is most likely a positive Western blot result
for infection with HIV?
A. Band at p24
B. Band at gp60
C. Bands at p24 and p31
D. Bands at p24 and gp120
D. Bands at p24 and gp120
- A woman who has had five pregnancies
subsequently tests positive for HIV by Western
blot. What is the most likely reason for this result?
A. Possible cross-reaction with herpes or EBV
antibodies
B. Interference from medication
C. Cross-reaction with HLA antigens in the antigen
preparation
D. Possible technical error
C. Cross-reaction with HLA antigens in the antigen
preparation
- Interpret the following results for HIV infection.
ELISA: positive; repeat ELISA: negative; Western blot:
no bands
A. Positive for HIV
B. Negative for HIV
C. Indeterminate
D. Further testing needed
B. Negative for HIV
- Interpret the following results for HIV infection.
HIV 1,2 ELISA: positive; HIV-1 Western blot:
indeterminate; HIV-1 p24 antigen: negative
A. Positive for antibodies to human
immunodeficiency virus, HIV-1
B. Positive for antibodies to human
immunodeficiency virus, HIV-2
C. Cross reaction; biological false-positive result
D. Additional testing required
D. Additional testing required
- What is the most likely explanation when antibody
tests for HIV are negative but a polymerase chain
reaction test performed 1 week later is positive?
A. Probably not HIV infection
B. Patient is in the “window phase” before antibody
production
C. Tests were performed incorrectly
D. Clinical signs may be misinterpreted
B. Patient is in the “window phase” before antibody
production
- What criteria constitute the classification system
for HIV infection?
A. CD4-positive T-cell count and clinical
symptoms
B. Clinical symptoms, condition, duration, and
number of positive bands on Western blot
C. Presence or absence of lymphadenopathy
D. Positive bands on Western blot and
CD8-positive T-cell count
A. CD4-positive T-cell count and clinical
symptoms
- What is the main difficulty associated with the
development of an HIV vaccine?
A. The virus has been difficult to culture; antigen
extraction and concentration are extremely
laborious
B. Human trials cannot be performed
C. Different strains of the virus are genetically
diverse
D. Anti-idiotype antibodies cannot be developed
C. Different strains of the virus are genetically
diverse
- Which CD4:CD8 ratio is most likely in a patient
with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)?
A. 2:1
B. 3:1
C. 2:3
D. 1:2
D. 1:2
- What is the advantage of 4th-generation rapid
HIV tests over earlier rapid HIV tests?
A. They use recombinant antigens
B. They detect multiple strains of HIV
C. They detect p24 antigen
D. They are quantitativ
C. They detect p24 antigen
- Which method is used to test for HIV infection in
infants who are born to HIV-positive mothers?
A. ELISA
B. Western blot test
C. Polymerase chain reaction
D. Viral culture
C. Polymerase chain reaction
- What is the most likely cause when a Western blot
or ELISA is positive for all controls and samples?
A. Improper pipetting
B. Improper washing
C. Improper addition of sample
D. Improper reading
B. Improper washing