In ELISpot, positive controls serve the dual purpose of demonstrating the functionality of the assay system as well as the quality of the cells used.
The definition of a number of highly immunogenic peptides from some common viruses has made it possible to offer an antigen-specific control for CD8 T cell responses in ELISpot. The CEF peptide pool consists of 23 viral peptides and has been shown to induce IFN-γ responses in almost 90% of all Caucasians.
MHC class I-restricted T-cell epitopes from human CMV, EBV and influenza (flu) virus, designed to stimulate T cells from donors with a variety of HLA types. This pool of 23 peptides stimulates CD8+ T cells to produce preferentially IFN-γ.