This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Other Versions of this Article: JCM.01888-07v1 46/3/928    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Google Scholar Articles by Kikuta, H. Articles by Kobayashi, K. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Kikuta, H. Articles by Kobayashi, K.

Comparison of a Lateral-Flow Immunochromatography Assay with Real-Time Reverse Transcription-PCR for Detection of Human Metapneumovirus

Pediatric Clinic, Touei Hospital, Sapporo,¹ Mitsubishi Chemical Medience Corporation, Tokyo,² Nippon Gene Co., Ltd., Tokyo,³ Sumiyoshi Pediatric Clinic, Chitose,⁴ Pediatric Clinic, Tenshi Hospital, Sapporo,⁵ Pediatric Clinic, Sapporo Kosei General Hospital, Sapporo,⁶ Poplar Pediatric Clinic, Sapporo,⁷ Pediatric Clinic, Hokkaido Social Insurance Hospital, Sapporo,⁸ Taguchi Pediatric Clinic, Sapporo,⁹ Pediatric Clinic, KKR Sapporo Medical Center, Sapporo,¹⁰ Pediatric Clinic, Sapporo Hokuyu Hospital, Sapporo,¹¹ Department of Pediatrics, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan,¹²

Received 22 September 2007/ Returned for modification 30 November 2007/ Accepted 20 December 2007

A lateral-flow immunochromatography (IC) assay for the detection of human metapneumovirus (hMPV) has been developed by using two mouse monoclonal antibodies to the nucleocapsid protein of hMPV. The purpose of this study was to compare the virus detection rate in nasopharyngeal secretions by the IC assay with that by real-time reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR). We collected nasopharyngeal swab samples from 247 children with respiratory symptoms in Sapporo, Japan, during the period from April to July 2007. Sixty-eight of the 247 children were positive for hMPV by real-time RT-PCR. When the real-time RT-PCR was used as the reference standard, the IC assay results were positive for 48 of the 68 real-time RT-PCR-positive children (70.6% sensitivity) and 8 of the 179 real-time RT-PCR-negative children (95.5% specificity). Although the sensitivity of the IC assay is lower than that of real-time RT-PCR, the IC assay is a rapid and useful test for the diagnosis of hMPV infections in children.

Published ahead of print on 3 January 2008.