Genomic Assays Identify Chikungunya Virus in Blood Donors
By LabMedica International staff writers Posted on 03 Aug 2015 |
The risk for transfusion-transmitted infection (TTI) of Chikungunya virus is currently unclear, but several factors raise concern about possible TTI with this virus, including a 10% to 25% asymptomatic infection rate and high viremic titers in asymptomatic persons.
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito borne alphavirus, family Togaviridae, causes an acute illness, manifested as fever and severe arthralgia and CHIKV infections are associated with global epidemics, and cases reemerged in the Americas in December 2013.
Scientists at the University of California San Francisco (CA, USA) and their associated developed a prototype CHIKV transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) assay to screen blood donors from Puerto Rico during the peak of the 2014 Caribbean epidemic. After routine blood donation to the American Red Cross April 4 to August 14, 2014, frozen surplus plasma samples from all donors were de-identified and retained for study.
The 557 samples were screened with a candidate screening real-time TMA CHIKV assay with a 95% limit of detection of 16.27 ribonucleic acid (RNA) copies/mL on the high-throughput automated Panther system (Hologic, Inc.; San Diego, CA, USA). For confirmation, they performed blinded orthogonal panviral microarray using the ViroChip and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of six samples, three positive for CHIKV and three randomly selected negative controls. They used unbiased metagenomic next-generation sequencing (NGS) as a pan-pathogen screen and to recover the viral genome from the three CHIKV-positive samples.
The author concluded that new genomic-based technologies have utility for outbreak investigation, blood borne pathogen screening, and disease surveillance. The availability of a high-throughput TMA assay will facilitate screening for CHIKV and more precisely establish the risk of transfusion-associated transmission. Panviral microarrays are useful for broad surveillance of blood borne pathogens yet rigorous individual probe validation across multiple targets is needed because of potential cross-hybridization artifacts. The study was published in the August 2015 issue of the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases.
Related Links:
University of California San Francisco
Hologic Inc.
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito borne alphavirus, family Togaviridae, causes an acute illness, manifested as fever and severe arthralgia and CHIKV infections are associated with global epidemics, and cases reemerged in the Americas in December 2013.
Scientists at the University of California San Francisco (CA, USA) and their associated developed a prototype CHIKV transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) assay to screen blood donors from Puerto Rico during the peak of the 2014 Caribbean epidemic. After routine blood donation to the American Red Cross April 4 to August 14, 2014, frozen surplus plasma samples from all donors were de-identified and retained for study.
The 557 samples were screened with a candidate screening real-time TMA CHIKV assay with a 95% limit of detection of 16.27 ribonucleic acid (RNA) copies/mL on the high-throughput automated Panther system (Hologic, Inc.; San Diego, CA, USA). For confirmation, they performed blinded orthogonal panviral microarray using the ViroChip and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of six samples, three positive for CHIKV and three randomly selected negative controls. They used unbiased metagenomic next-generation sequencing (NGS) as a pan-pathogen screen and to recover the viral genome from the three CHIKV-positive samples.
The author concluded that new genomic-based technologies have utility for outbreak investigation, blood borne pathogen screening, and disease surveillance. The availability of a high-throughput TMA assay will facilitate screening for CHIKV and more precisely establish the risk of transfusion-associated transmission. Panviral microarrays are useful for broad surveillance of blood borne pathogens yet rigorous individual probe validation across multiple targets is needed because of potential cross-hybridization artifacts. The study was published in the August 2015 issue of the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases.
Related Links:
University of California San Francisco
Hologic Inc.
Read the full article by registering today, it's FREE!
Register now for FREE to LabMedica.com and get complete access to news and events that shape the world of Clinical Laboratory Medicine.
- Free digital version edition of LabMedica International sent by email on regular basis
- Free print version of LabMedica International magazine (available only outside USA and Canada).
- Free and unlimited access to back issues of LabMedica International in digital format
- Free LabMedica International Newsletter sent every week containing the latest news
- Free breaking news sent via email
- Free access to Events Calendar
- Free access to LinkXpress new product services
- REGISTRATION IS FREE AND EASY!
Sign in: Registered website members
Sign in: Registered magazine subscribers
Latest Microbiology News
- Integrated Solution Ushers New Era of Automated Tuberculosis Testing
- Automated Sepsis Test System Enables Rapid Diagnosis for Patients with Severe Bloodstream Infections
- Enhanced Rapid Syndromic Molecular Diagnostic Solution Detects Broad Range of Infectious Diseases
- Clinical Decision Support Software a Game-Changer in Antimicrobial Resistance Battle
- New CE-Marked Hepatitis Assays to Help Diagnose Infections Earlier
- 1 Hour, Direct-From-Blood Multiplex PCR Test Identifies 95% of Sepsis-Causing Pathogens
- Mouth Bacteria Test Could Predict Colon Cancer Progression
- Unique Metabolic Signature Could Enable Sepsis Diagnosis within One Hour of Blood Collection
- Groundbreaking Diagnostic Platform Provides AST Results With Unprecedented Speed
- Simple Blood Test Combined With Personalized Risk Model Improves Sepsis Diagnosis
- Blood Analysis Predicts Sepsis and Organ Failure in Children
- TB Blood Test Could Detect Millions of Silent Spreaders
- New Blood Test Cuts Diagnosis Time for Nontuberculous Mycobacteria Infections from Months to Hours
- New Tuberculosis Test to Expand Testing Access in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
- Rapid Test Diagnoses Tropical Disease within Hours for Faster Antibiotics Treatment
- Rapid Molecular Testing Enables Faster, More Targeted Antibiotic Treatment for Pneumonia