Poxvirus and Rabies Branch, Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology (Proposed), National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (Proposed), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30333, United States.
J Virol Methods. 2010 Oct;169(1):223-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2010.07.012. Epub 2010 Jul 17.
Orthopoxvirus monkeypox (MPXV) forms two distinct clades: the MPXV Congo Basin clade viruses are endemic in the Congo Basin, human illness typically presents with symptoms similar to discrete, ordinary smallpox and has a case fatality rate of approximately 10% in unvaccinated populations; the MPXV West African clade viruses have been isolated in West Africa and appear to cause a less severe, and less inter-human transmissible disease. Recently, monkeypox outbreaks were reported in US and Sudan caused by MPXV West African and Congo Basin strains respectively. These events demonstrated the ability and trend of the virus to exploit new hosts and emerge globally; it also emphasizes the need for the diagnosis of MPXV, especially the ability to distinguish between Congo Basin and West African monkeypox strains. In this study, three new real-time PCR assays based on TaqMan probe technology were reported: the MPXV West African specific, Congo Basin strain specific and MPXV generic assays. The new assays demonstrated good specificity and sensitivity in the validation study with multiple platforms and various PCR reagent kits, and will improve the rapid detection and differentiation of monkeypox infections from other rash illness.
正痘病毒猴痘（MPXV）形成两个不同的进化枝：刚果盆地分支病毒是刚果盆地的地方病，人类疾病通常表现为类似于离散的、普通的天花的症状，未接种疫苗的人群的病死率约为 10%；西非分支病毒已在西非分离出来，似乎引起的疾病不太严重，人际传播能力也较低。最近，美国和苏丹分别报告了由西非和刚果盆地分支猴痘病毒引起的猴痘暴发。这些事件表明了该病毒利用新宿主并在全球出现的能力和趋势；它还强调了对 MPXV 的诊断的必要性，特别是区分刚果盆地和西非猴痘株的能力。在这项研究中，报道了三种基于 TaqMan 探针技术的新实时 PCR 检测方法：西非分支特异性、刚果盆地株特异性和 MPXV 通用检测方法。新的检测方法在使用多个平台和不同的 PCR 试剂试剂盒进行验证研究中表现出良好的特异性和敏感性，将提高对猴痘感染与其他皮疹疾病的快速检测和区分。
