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Updated: Oct 8, 2026

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. Part III. Virus Detection by RT-qPCR
12:32

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. Part III. Virus Detection by RT-qPCR

Published on: January 16, 2016

Molecular detection and identification of an enterovirus during an outbreak of aseptic meningitis

N Siafakas1, A Georgopoulou, P Markoulatos

  • 1University of Essex, Department of Biological Sciences, John Tabor Laboratories, Essex, England.

Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis
|April 6, 2001
PubMed

Insights

Molecular methods like RT-PCR rapidly detected enteroviruses, specifically Coxsackie B viruses, in children with meningitis. These techniques also confirmed epidemiological links between virus strains, offering insights into virus evolution and spread.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Enteroviruses are a common cause of viral meningitis in children.
  • Geographically isolated regions can present unique challenges for epidemiological surveillance.
  • Conventional cell culture methods for enterovirus detection can be slow and have variable sensitivity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate enterovirus infections in pediatric meningitis cases from diverse Greek regions.
  • To compare the efficacy of conventional cell culture with molecular methods for enterovirus detection and characterization.
  • To analyze the epidemiological relationships between enterovirus isolates.

Main Methods:

  • Enterovirus isolation using cell culture (RD cell line).
  • Seroneutralization for virus typing.
  • Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) for rapid detection.
  • Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) and Single Strand Conformation Polymorphism (SSCP) for molecular typing and epidemiological analysis.

Main Results:

  • Enteroviruses were detected in all sixteen pediatric meningitis cases.
  • Coxsackie B viruses were identified as the causative agents.
  • RT-PCR provided rapid and accurate detection of enteroviruses.
  • RFLP and SSCP analyses confirmed the isolates as Coxsackie B5 and indicated epidemiological links.

Conclusions:

  • Molecular methods, particularly RT-PCR, offer significant advantages in speed and accuracy over conventional cell culture for enterovirus detection in meningitis cases.
  • RFLP and SSCP are valuable tools for characterizing enterovirus strains and understanding their epidemiological circulation.
  • The study highlights the utility of molecular techniques for monitoring virus evolution and spread in populations.

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