Most Americans have a positive Mumps Skin Test. Why? Most of use were exposed to the Mumps virus at some time in our lives and therefore have Mumps antibodies in our system. The test reveals these antibodies. A positive test doesn’t mean you have Mumps only that you’ve been exposed to it at some time in the past. The skin test is not useful for the diagnosis of active Mumps but is often used simply to prove that a person’s immune system is intact and working.
We produce similar antibodies to very bacterium, virus, and other invader we encounter. This antibody building is going on every minute of every day as we are constantly exposed to these critters. Each of us has a different history of exposure to these various “bugs” and will necessarily have different types and amounts of antibodies running around our body. If these antibodies were tested for, each of us would have a unique “Antibody Profile.”
This individually unique profile just might be a method for identifying each of us and it seems that Global Forensics Ltd (UK) and Identity Sciences LLC (US) are marketing just such a TEST. The AbP ID test, developed by Idaho National Laboratory, seeks out Individual Specific Antibodies (ISAs), which are found in every tissue and body fluid. Since each of us has a unique antibody profile the discrimination should rival that of DNA Profiling. Maybe better since even identical twins, who have the same DNA, will have unique antibody profiles.
The test seems to be rapid (two hours), cheap, and doesn’t require a specialized lab, highly trained lab techs, or a large sample.
This is a technique that deserves watching. Begin with this VIDEO.
The Crime Fiction Writer's Blog 
amyshojai
July 18, 2011 at 10:26 am
That is way kewl, thanks Doug!
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Laura Mitchell
July 18, 2011 at 10:34 am
Years ago, I took a class with a nurse who was a supervisor at the county jail. To screen inmates for HIV, she said what they were doing was called anergy testing. They would take something that pretty much everyone was exposed to (I think they were using coccidiomycosis, but I’m not sure). If the inmate had a negative ELISA and a positive antigen test, then they were considered to be HIV negative with the rationale that they had an intact immune system.
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Meg Mims
July 18, 2011 at 2:17 pm
WOW!! awesome
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ljsellers
July 18, 2011 at 9:42 pm
Fascinating! I wish I could write enough novels to use everything I learn here.
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M.E. Anders
July 22, 2011 at 6:02 am
Your blog is packed with useful information for crime/thriller/scifi writers. I’m thrilled to subscribe. Never knew this about the Mumps – very cool!
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Pj Schott
August 11, 2011 at 10:12 am
WOW!!
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Jane
April 4, 2012 at 7:40 pm
I’m an identical twin. My sister, who passed away several years ago from breast cancer, was sick on and off her entire life. Sometimes just “normal” illnesses (flu, for example) but sometimes devastatingly ill. She was sick an entire summer but no diagnosis was ever made. I,on the other hand, have rarely been ill. Since identical twins have the same DNA, I never understood why she would have suffered from so many illnesses while I escaped virtually untouched. Could this “antibody” profile be the answer? I’ve often felt so guilty for being so healthy while she was not. Could I have “lucked up” with antibodies she never had? I’d love to talk to someone doing this research.
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D.P. Lyle, MD
April 5, 2012 at 8:01 am
That’s not what this technique is used for but who knows maybe down the road. Many things in medicine simply can’t be explained. Luck plays into everything.
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Jane
April 5, 2012 at 8:56 am
I realize that this technique is used for forensic purposes, but I thought it might explain my healthy life (not lifestyle) as opposed to my sister’s chronic illnesses since, as I understand it, antibodies are part of the immune system. If DNA determines our physical wellness throughout our lives, and identical twin DNA is the same, isn’t it possible that a person’s “antibody profile” could override (I can’t think of another term to use) bad DNA? To be honest, my sister led a much more responsible life than I did…I drank, smoked, partied a LOT, etc., while she did none of those things. It has to be more than luck that I survived all that,and am still very healthy. I appreciate your taking the time to respond…this is just my personal search to find an explanation that,like you say, may not be possible.
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D.P. Lyle, MD
April 5, 2012 at 9:37 am
This technique is so new that no one knows yet exactly how useful it will be or exactly what it can be used for. We’ll have to wait and see.
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