Validation of molecular diagnostics for the detection of pseudocowpox virus

Braz J Microbiol. 2022 Jun;53(2):1077-1080. doi: 10.1007/s42770-021-00664-3. Epub 2022 Feb 27.

Abstract

The pseudocowpox virus (PCPV) is recognized for causing exanthematic lesions in cattle and humans. The diagnosis is important because it is a zoonosis and its clinical signs can be confused with foot-and-mouth disease, a high-impact bovine disease in livestock. The objective of this work is to validate a SYBR Green qPCR and a conventional PCR for virus detection in bovine samples. Detection limit tests, repeatability, reproducibility, sensitivity, and specificity were compared. When two analysts were compared, results demonstrated that training and pipetting influence the repeatability. The qPCR was more sensitive than conventional PCR but showed nonspecific reactions distinguishable by the melting curve. Both showed high repeatability and reproducibility.

Keywords: Diagnostic; PCR; Parapoxvirus; Pseudocowpox virus.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cattle
  • Cattle Diseases* / diagnosis
  • Pathology, Molecular
  • Poxviridae Infections* / diagnosis
  • Poxviridae Infections* / veterinary
  • Pseudocowpox Virus / genetics
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Sensitivity and Specificity