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Updated: Jul 6, 2026
Multiplexed Isothermal Amplification Based Diagnostic Platform to Detect Zika, Chikungunya, and Dengue 1
Published on: March 13, 2018
Characterisation of a chikungunya virus from a German patient returning from Mauritius and development of a
Stefan Kowalzik1, Nghia Vu Xuan, Benedikt Weissbrich
1Institut für Virologie und Immunbiologie, Universität Würzburg, Versbacher Str. 7, 97078, Wurzburg, Germany.
Abstract:
We have isolated a Chikungunya (Chik) virus from a patient who returned to Germany after a three-month visit to Mauritius in spring 2006. Upon return she developed a transient fever up to 40 degrees C. This was followed by myalgia and joint pain. IgG antibodies in serum to Chik virus were undetectable. Virus (Chik-Wü1) was isolated on Vero cells. We molecularly cloned the whole genome of Chik-Wü1 from viral RNA by RT-PCR. The complete sequence was determined and functional domains of the genome were assigned. Chik-Wü1 clearly belongs to the group of viruses analysed from the recent Indian Ocean outbreak. In order to develop tools useful for further characterization of Chik-Wü1, we bacterially expressed and purified the capsid (C) and envelope (E) proteins and established an immunoblot assay. Twenty-two of 30 serum samples from Chik virus-infected patients that scored positive in indirect immunofluorescence previously were also reactive in immunoblot analysis with recombinant C and E2 antigens.
