AUTHOR=Liu Xin , Zhang Wenchao , Wang Dongjing , Zhu Xinyue , Chen Ying , Ouyang Kang , Wei Zuzhang , Liu Huan , Huang Weijian 

TITLE=Establishment of a Multiplex RT-PCR Method for the Detection of Five Known Genotypes of Porcine Astroviruses

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Veterinary Science

VOLUME=Volume 8 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2021.684279

DOI=10.3389/fvets.2021.684279

ISSN=2297-1769

ABSTRACT=Porcine astroviruses (PAstVs) are prevalent in pigs worldwide and five known genotypes have been reported to circulate in China. However, little is known about the co-infection status of PAstVs. For differential diagnosis, a multiplex RT-PCR method was established on the basis of the ORF2 gene of type 1 PAstV and the ORF1ab genes of type2~5 PAstVs. This multiplex RT-PCR could specifically detect all the five PAstV genotypes without cross-reaction to any other major viruses circulating in Chinese pig farms. The detection limit of this method was as low as 102 ng cDNA of each PAstV genotypes. A total of 275 fecal samples collected from different districts of Guangxi, China, between April 2019 and November 2020 were tested by this multiplex RT-PCR. The results revealed that PAstV1 (31/275), PAstV2 (49/275), PAstV3 (36/275), PAstV4 (41/275) and PAstV5 (22/275) were all detected, and dual (PAstV1+PAstV2, PAstV1+PAstV3, PAstV2+PAstV3, PAstV2+PAstV4, PAstV3+PAstV4, PAstV4+PAstV5) or triple genotypes (PAstV1+PAstV2+PAstV3, PAstV2+PAstV3+PAstV4) of co-infections were also unveiled in this study. This multiplex RT-PCR method offered a valuable tool for the differential diagnosis of PAstVs circulating in pig herds and will facilitate the surveillance of PAstV co-infection status.