wildlife and zoo assay data sheet
Porcine parvovirus
Test code:
S0122 -
Ultrasensitive qualitative detection of porcine parvovirus by
real time polymerase chain reaction
Porcine
parvovirus (PPV) is a member of the Parvoviridae family. Swine
infected with the virus can experience reproductive problems,
including abortion, small litters, still births, neonatal deaths
and weak piglets. There is no clinically apparent disease in
non-pregnant pigs. Disease usually occurs when sero-negative
dams are infected in the first half of gestation and the virus
crosses the placenta.
Infection of
post-natal pigs usually produces no detectable clinical signs.
Even in pigs showing symptoms, the clinical picture is variable
depending on the developmental stage. There may be increased
abortion rates in herds, small litters, mummified fetuses,
neonatal death and weak piglets. In boars, PPV can temporarily
disturb spermatogenesis.
PPV is
endemic in most countries with large pig populations. The virus
can be transmitted via oronasal, transplacental and venereal
routes, but oronasal is the most important route of infection.
The virus is shed for only about two weeks after infection, in
feces, urine, semen and nasal secretions. The greatest source of
infection is the fluids and fetal membranes of parturient sows.
The virus can persist for four months or more in the
environment.
The most
common methods used to detect PPV infection are fluorescent
antibody (IFA) staining of fetal tissues, hemagglutination assay
of tissue extracts and virus isolation from fetal tissues. Low
specificity and low sensitivity are the major drawbacks of these
techniques. In contrast, molecular detection by PCR offers
rapid, specific and sensitive detection of the virus (Soares et
al., 1999).
Utilities:
-
Help confirm the disease causing agent
-
Identify porcine parvovirus carriers
-
Help ensure that animal groups and populations are free of
porcine parvovirus
-
Early prevention of spread of the virus among animals
-
Minimize human exposure to the virus
-
Safety monitoring of biological products that derive
from animals
References:
Soares, R.M., Durigon, E.L., Bersano, J.G. and Richtzenhain LJ.
(1999) Detection of porcine parvovirus DNA by the polymerase
chain reaction assay using primers to the highly conserved
nonstructural protein gene, NS-1. J. Virol. Methods 78: 191-198.
Specimen requirements: 0.2 ml whole blood in EDTA (purple top) tube, or 0.2 ml feces or urine, or 0.2 ml fresh, frozen or fixed
tissue, or nasal swab or rectal swab.
Contact Zoologix if advice is needed to determine an appropriate specimen type for a specific diagnostic application. For specimen types not listed here, please contact Zoologix to confirm specimen acceptability and shipping instructions.
For all
specimen types, if there will be a delay in shipping, or during
very warm weather, refrigerate specimens until shipped and ship
with a cold pack unless more stringent shipping requirements are
specified. Frozen specimens should be shipped so as to remain
frozen in transit. See shipping
instructions for more information.
Turnaround time:
2 business days
Methodology:
Qualitative real time PCR
Normal range:
Nondetected