Development of syndromic tests for the surveillance of emerging infectious diseases

The Zika virus, a mosquito-borne pathogen, has emerged as a global health concern due to its association with severe neurological complications and congenital malformations. Timely and accurate detection of Zika virus RNA in biological samples is essential for effective disease management and surveillance. Real-time PCR (polymerase chain reaction) assays have been proven to be invaluable tools for the sensitive and specific detection of viral nucleic acids. This study presents the development and validation of real-time PCR assays tailored for the detection of Zika virus RNA in various biological samples. The assays were designed to be compatible with the Panther Fusion Open System, an automated and high-throughput platform that streamlines the molecular diagnostic workflow. Key aspects of this research include the design of highly specific primers and probes targeting conserved regions of the Zika virus genome, as well as the optimization of reaction conditions for robust and reproducible results. The assays were validated using a panel of reference strains and characterized for their analytical sensitivity, specificity, and dynamic range. Furthermore, the performance of these assays was assessed using clinical samples, including blood, and urine to demonstrate their utility in real-world diagnostic scenarios. The ability to detect Zika RNA in a variety of biological matrices makes these assays versatile tools for both clinical diagnosis and epidemiological surveillance.