Diagnostic tools for Toscana virus infection

Abstract

Toscana virus (TOSV; Phlebovirus, Bunyaviridae) is an important etiological agent of acute meningitis and meningoencephalitis in Mediterranean countries. Laboratory diagnosis has been carried out in serological studies using ELISA, immunofluorescence and/or neutralization tests that are not influenced by the virus viability; however, in the acute phase of the infection, nucleic acid amplification techniques are the methods of choice to diagnose viral meningitis from cerebrospinal fluid samples. Molecular methods are rapid and sensitive and, unlike traditional methods, such as virus isolation by cell culture, they are not influenced by the viability of the virus in the clinical specimen; however, the RNA integrity is crucial for the success of these methods. Real-time PCR is the most important molecular method used in laboratories worldwide, since it is less time-consuming and it reduces the risk of contamination. Therefore, a sensitive real-time PCR has been developed for diagnosis of suspected cases of TOSV infection either autochthonous and/or imported, since a new lineage of TOSV, divergent from the Italian prototype, has recently been reported in Spain.

Keywords::

• ELISA
• IFA
• immunoblotting
• indirect immunofluorescence
• real-time RT-PCR
• RT-PCR
• Toscana virus

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.