Microarray-based molecular detection of viral pathogens associated with respiratory infections

Abstract

Objective: Acute respiratory infections are one of the most common infectious diseases. Clinical course of acute respiratory infections in young children and the elderly may be serious and life-threatening. It has been emphasized that 20-60% of etiologic agents are viruses. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common viral pathogen in children. On the other hand, influenza virus is the most commonly identified agent in adults. The aim of this study is to identify the viral pathogens in hospitalized patients with respiratory tract infection by using multiplex PCR method.Methods: Nasopharyngeal swab samples obtained from hospitalized patients with acute respiratory infections were enrolled between January 2013 and December 2015. The identification of influenza virus type A and B, human rhinovirus (HRV), respiratory syncytial virus A and B (RSV A-B), parainfluenza virus type 1, 2, 3, and 4, adenovirus, bocavirus, human coronavirus, human enterovirus and human metapneumovirus (HMPV) in nasopharyngeal samples was investigated by using CLART ® Pneumovir kit based on clinical array technology (Genomica, Spain).Results: Of the 1290 patients included, 1110 (86%) were children and 180 (14%) were adults. The number of samples in which only one virus was identified was 600. In additional 150 specimens, co-infections of multiple viruses were detected. The total of positive samples was 750 (58%). The majority of these positive specimens were children's samples (694 versus 56). RSV was the most common viral agent (35%) followed by HRV (13%), and influenza (10%). The rate of co-existence of viral pathogens was 20%. The multiplex pcr results were shown in Table 1.Conclusion: While RSV was the most common viral pathogen detected inrespiratory infections, other emerging agents, such as human metapneumovirus, bocavirus, and HRV were detected in considerably high rates, suggesting these emerging agents should not be underestimated in the etiology of respiratory infections. In conclusion, in this study, it was shown that microarray-based multiplex PCR method is an easy, rapid, and sensitive diagnostic tool for diagnosis of viral respiratory infections and that utility of this method makes it essential among routine diagnostic tools in clinical microbiology laboratories. http://dx. Abstract no: 233 Presentation at ESCV 2016: Poster 193