Detection and typing of lymphotropic herpesviruses by multiplex polymerase chain reaction

A multiplex nested-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was developed for the simultaneous detection and typing of all human lymphotropic herpesviruses described to date, including Ebstein Barr virus (EBV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), human herpesvirus 6, variants A and B (HHV6-A, HHV6-B), human herpesvirus 7 (HHV7) and human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8). Oligonucleotide primers were designed to amplify a highly conserved region within the DNA polymerase gene. Each reaction component and thermal cycling parameters were thoroughly standardized to achieve optimal specificity and sensitivity for the PCR assay, which was estimated at about 10-100 molecules for each virus. An internal control, consisting of 100 molecules of a cloned fragment of the porcine pseudorabies herpesvirus (PrV) genome, was included to detect false negative results. To assess suitability and clinical application of the multiplex PCR method, a total of 35 well-characterized specimens, including Kaposi's sarcoma skin lesions, serum, cerebrospinal fluid, saliva and urine samples, were tested. Results obtained suggest this technique could be applied as a sole diagnostic tool in several clinical settings in which herpesviral infection is suspected and differential diagnosis required, avoiding the need to test specimens by separate PCR methods.