Detection of respiratory syncytial virus by semi-nested RT-PCR

  Objective   To develop a rapid, sensitive, specific method to detect human respiratory syncytial virus(RSV).

  Methods   Three pieces of primer were designed from the conservative F gene of RSV and a semi-nested RT-PCR method was achieved.This method was used to diagnose 125 nasopharyngeal aspirates obtained from children with lower respiratory tract infection, at the same time the specimens were also analyzed by viral isolation and direct fluorescent-antibody assay(DFA).

  Results   The sensitivity of the semi-nested RT-PCR assay was determined to be 0.1 TCID₅₀; 63 cases(50.4%) were identified RSV-positive by the semi-nested RT-PCR.

  Conclusion   The semi-nested RT-PCR was a rapid, sensitive, specific method for diagnosis of RSV infection, and it could be used for early clinical diagnosis as well as epidemiological surveillance.