title: Method for detection of respiratory viruses in the sputa of patients with cystic fibrosis.
abstract: Since the role of respiratory viruses in lung exacerbations of patients with cystic fibrosis has been hampered by the difficulty of detecting viruses in viscous sputum specimens, a multiplex reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) assay combined with colorimetric amplicon detection was tested for the identification of seven common respiratory viruses in the sputa of cystic fibrosis patients. Of 52 sputa from 38 patients, 12 (23%) samples from 12 patients were positive for a respiratory virus (4 for influenza B, 3 for parainfluenza 1, 3 for influenza A and 2 for respiratory syncytial virus). These results suggest that the RT-PCR method carried out on sputum may provide a convenient means of investigating the role of virus infection in lung exacerbations of cystic fibrosis patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, University of Sydney, Parramatta Road, Camperdown, New South Wales 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Punch
authors.forename: M W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Syrmis
authors.forename: B R
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Harbour
authors.forename: P T P
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Bye
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Nissen
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Elkins
authors.forename: T P
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Sloots
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003550:Cystic Fibrosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000821:virology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D011336:Probability; D011379:Prognosis; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D018357:Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D012136:Respiratory Syncytial Viruses / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013183:Sputum / Q000821:virology*
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral