Analytical and Clinical Evaluation of a TaqMan Real-Time PCR Assay for the Detection of Chikungunya Virus

Abstract

Chikungunya virus causes chikungunya fever, a disease characterized by fever, rash, and joint pain. In the early phase of infection, chikungunya fever is always misdiagnosed as other arbovirus infections, such as dengue.

Advancements in chikungunya virus management: FDA approval of ixchiq vaccine and global perspectives

“…The in‐house TaqMan RT‐qPCR assay has been shown to exhibit superior sensitivity compared to commercial RT‐qPCR assays and is considered the gold standard for CHIKV detection. 11 Additionally, ELISA serves as a valuable method for CHIKV detection by verifying the presence of specific antibodies, including IgM and IgG anti‐chikungunya antibodies. The direct detection of the virus in blood by RT‐qPCR assays is feasible during the initial infection days.…”

An improved alphaviruses‐specific RT‐qPCR facilitates monitoring and prevention of alphaviruses

“…Therefore, molecular tests, such as reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR), reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) have been widely used for alphaviruses detection. 15 Although many speciesspecific RT-PCR and RT-qPCR have been developed for detecting important alphaviruses, such as CHIKV, 16 EEEV, 17 WEEV, 18,19 VEEV, 20 MAYV, [21][22][23] RRV, [24][25][26] SINV, [27][28][29][30] Semliki Forest virus (SFV), 31 Barmah Forest virus (BFV), 32 and O'nyong-nyong virus (ONNV), 33 they typically detect only one or two alphaviruses per run, nevertheless the Alphavirus genus encompasses over 30 species distributed worldwide, with a diverse range of hosts and vectors, 34 posing a significant challenge to comprehensively monitor all alphaviruses during routine pathogen surveillance.…”