Saliva immunoassay for detection of exposure to infectious agents

1 . A method for diagnosing a possibility of cardiovascular disease or autoimmune disease in a patient, comprising the steps of:

a) obtaining a sample from said patient

b) determining a level of antibodies in the sample, said antibodies being directed against an infectious agent associated with pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease or autoimmune disease or a corresponding recombinant antigen or synthetic peptide;

c) comparing the level of antibodies determined in step b) with normal levels of said antibodies, wherein

normal levels of infectious antibodies indicate optimal conditions; and

higher than normal levels of infectious agent antibodies indicate the possibility of cardiovascular disease or autoimmune disease.

2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein step a) comprises determining a level of antibodies against an infectious agent selected from the group consisting of bacterial agent, parasitic agent, and viral agent.

3 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein step a) comprises determining a level of antibodies against an infectious agent selected from the group consisting of Streptococcus sanguis, Streptococcus oralis, Peptostreptococcus anaerobius, Eubacterium alactolyticum, Bacteroides oralis, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Borellia burdorferi, Treponema pallidium, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Mycoplasma genitalium, Mycoplasma fermentens, Mycoplasma oralis, Chlamydia pneumoniae, Chlamydia trachomatis, Helicobacter pylori , Coxsackievirus, Epstein-Barr virus, Cytomegalovirus, Hepatitis A, and Trypanozoma cruzei.

4 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein determining the level of antibodies in steps a) and b) is accomplished using an immunoassay.

5 . The method according to claim 6 , wherein the immunoassay is an ELISA test.

6 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the antibodies in steps a) and b) is measured from saliva.

7 . The method according to claim 6 , wherein the measured antibodies are IgA.