Detection and identification of rabies and rabies-related viruses using rapid-cycle PCR.
The rapid identification of suspect rabies infection is essential in human cases, to ensure appropriate post-exposure treatment of contacts, and in animal cases to allow specific control strategies to be decided and implemented. We describe here the use of high speed air thermo-cycler PCR as a diagnostic tool for the detection of rabies and rabies-related viruses. Using this technique we were able to diagnose rabies in a human within 5 h. Furthermore, the application of automated sequencing of the resultant product enabled a definitive characterisation of classical rabies within 16 h. The utility of this assay was confirmed further by the successful detection of representatives of the six lyssavirus genotypes.
Heaton
P R
PR
Rabies Research and Diagnostic Group, Department of Virology, Veterinary Laboratories Agency (Weybridge), Addlestone, Surrey, UK. pheaton@hgmp.mrc.ac.uk
McElhinney
L M
LM
Lowings
J P
JP
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002417:Cattle; D002685:Chiroptera; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011820:Rabies virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D012788:Shrews
D017931:DNA Primers