Detection of hog cholera virus and differentiation from other pestiviruses by polymerase chain reaction.

Reverse transcription coupled with the polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used for the detection and differentiation of pestiviruses. For this purpose, one primer pair was selected from a highly conserved region of the genome of pestiviruses. Using these primers (PEST 1-PEST 2), DNA fragments of between 72 and 74 bp could be amplified from all pestivirus isolates tested. In order to differentiate hog cholera virus (HCV) from bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) and border disease virus (BDV), we selected a primer pair from a conserved region in the genome of HCV strains that differed from that sequenced in the genome of BVDV strains. By using these primers (HCV 1-HCV 2), a DNA fragment of 478 bp could be specifically amplified from HCV isolates. By these means, viral RNA was detected in extracts of lymph node, spleen, tonsil, and lung. Such extracts were used directly for RT-PCR without prior RNA isolation. We also performed multiplex PCR by using both the PEST 1-PEST 2 and HCV 1-HCV 2 primer pairs in a single reaction. This allowed the differentiation of HCV from BVDV and BDV in one step. To assess the sensitivity of the method, RT-PCR was compared with virus propagation in tissue culture and subsequent detection by immunofluorescence staining. The results show that RT-PCR is useful for the rapid detection and differentiation of pestiviruses.