title: Evaluation of reverse-transcriptase PCR as a diagnostic tool to confirm Japanese encephalitis virus infection.
abstract: Japanese encephalitis (JE) is a serious central nervous system infection and major public health problem in several countries of Southeast Asia including India. This study evaluated the use of IgM ELISA and reverse-transcriptase (RT)-PCR in blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from acute encephalitis patients for the detection of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). Forty-four children suffering from acute encephalitis were enrolled, and 36 were selected from whom both CSF and serum samples were available. Twenty-two of the 36 CSF samples were positive for JEV by IgM ELISA and all were negative by RT-PCR. Twenty-three of the 36 serum samples were positive by IgM ELISA while 28 were positive by RT-PCR. Total positivity for JEV infection in CSF and serum samples was 66.7% (24/36) and 83.3% (30/36) respectively by one or both tests. The overall positivity for JEV infection was 86.1% (31/36). We suggest that the use of RT-PCR in serum samples during the early days of JEV infection may be helpful in confirming diagnosis in those cases which are negative for JEV-specific IgM antibodies in both serum and CSF samples.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow 226 014, India.
authors.forename: Vandana
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Saxena
authors.forename: Virendra K
authors.initials: VK
authors.lastname: Mishra
authors.forename: Tapan N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Dhole
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004664:Encephalitis Virus, Japanese / Q000276:immunology*; D004672:Encephalitis, Japanese / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000097:blood / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D007194:India; D007223:Infant; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D012367:RNA, Viral