Detection of enteric viruses in oysters by using the polymerase chain reaction.
A procedure for the detection of enteric viral nucleic acid in oysters by the polymerase chain reaction was developed. Known quantities of poliovirus type 1 were seeded into oysters. Virus was extracted and concentrated by using organic flocculation and polyethylene glycol precipitation. Inhibitors of reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction were present in the oyster extracts, preventing amplification of target viral nucleic acid. The use of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide precipitation sufficiently removed inhibitors to allow detection of as few as 10 PFU of poliovirus. Norwalk virus also could be detected after being seeded into oysters. This methodology may be useful for the detection of these and other shellfish-borne viral pathogens.
Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030.
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D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006507:Hepatovirus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009663:Norwalk virus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D010125:Ostreidae / Q000382:microbiology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction