Director Clinical Expertise Antech/MARS Portland, ME, United States
Abstract:
Background: With the continued expansion of tick vectors and transmitted pathogens across the United States (US) and Canada, effective surveillance for Anaplasma spp. (A. phagocytophilum and A. platys) in dogs is essential. Serology-based antibody screening remains a reliable and recommended method for identifying exposure to tick-borne pathogens of One Health significance.
Objectives: To evaluate the performance of two commercially available screening tests: 1. A proprietary silicon surface multiplex immunoassay (SSMIA, Accuplex®, Antech Diagnostics, Mars Petcare Science & Diagnostics) and, 2. A point-of-care (POC) test (SNAP® 4Dx® Plus, IDEXX). Both were compared to indirect fluorescent antibody (REFERENCE) as the standard. POC was used as no validation publications for Lab 4Dx Plus® were available. Animals: Anonymized remnant serum samples from dogs in the US submitted to a veterinary reference laboratory.
Methods: Samples (n =310) were processed using SSMIA, POC, and REFERENCE, following manufacturers’ protocols for SNAP and REFERENCE and reference laboratory Standard Operating Procedures for SSMIA. Operators were blinded to previous results. Performance metrics—sensitivity, specificity, and Kappa statistics—were calculated using REFERENCE as the standard.
Results: Both SSMIA and POC demonstrated comparable performance metrics (Table).
Conclusions: SSMIA is a highly accurate option for detecting Anaplasma spp. exposure in dogs, supporting its use in routine veterinary tick-borne pathogen surveillance. This study provides clinicians with comparative performance data to inform decision-making and support client communication.
