A Stable and Dependable Visual Technique for On-Site Nipah Virus Nucleic Acids Detection

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Molecular Diagnostics
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Nipah Virus (NiV) is a highly fatal zoonotic pathogen endemic to Asia.
• Increasing human transmission necessitates rapid, field-deployable diagnostic methods for NiV.
• Current diagnostic methods may lack the speed and accessibility required for effective field surveillance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a point-of-care nucleic acid detection (POC-NAD) system for Nipah Virus (NiV).
• To enable rapid, accurate, and reliable field diagnosis of NiV infections.
• To facilitate timely NiV surveillance and control measures in resource-limited settings.

Main Methods:

• Design of specific primers targeting conserved G and P genes of NiV.
• Integration of one-step RT-PCR, lateral flow immunoassay, and microfluidic technologies into a POC-NAD system.
• Evaluation of the system's performance using simulated clinical samples and assessment of its limit of detection (LoD).

Main Results:

• The developed POC-NAD system demonstrated high specificity and sensitivity with an LoD of 199.1 copies/rxn.
• Primers enabled simultaneous detection of both NiV-M and NiV-B strains.
• 100% concordance with RT-PCR results was observed in 21 simulated clinical samples, with improved display time and legibility via lateral flow visualization.

Conclusions:

• The POC-NAD system is a suitable tool for real-time nucleic acid testing of Nipah Virus (NiV).
• Microfluidic integration ensures consistent performance across diverse field conditions.
• This diagnostic tool is highly valuable for NiV surveillance in resource-limited environments.