Use of TaqMan Array card for the detection of respiratory viral pathogens in children under 5 years old hospitalised with acute medical illness in Ballabgarh, Haryana, India.

Gaur, Bharti; Saha, Siddhartha; Iuliano, A Danielle; Rai, Sanjay K; Krishnan, Anand; Jain, Seema; Whitaker, Brett; Winchell, Jonas; Lal, Renu B; Broor, Shobha

Historical specimens collected from hospitalized children were tested for the following 13 viruses: influenza A and B; respiratory syncytial virus (RSV); parainfluenza viruses 1-3; human metapneumovirus; rhinovirus; coronaviruses 229E, OC43, NL63 and HKU1 and Adenovirus using monoplex real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR). They were retested using TaqMan Array Card (TAC), a micro-fluidic system, capable of simultaneous multi-pathogen testing, to evaluate its sensitivity and specificity against monoplex rRT-PCR. TAC showed high sensitivity (71%-100%) and specificity (98%-100%) for these viruses in comparison to monoplex rRT-PCR. Multi-specimen detection with high sensitivity and specificity makes TAC a potentially useful tool for both surveillance and outbreak investigations.