Development and evaluation of a SYBR Green I RT-qPCR assay for Feline Infection Peritonitis virus detection

Abstract

Background Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP) is a fatal, systemic disease caused by a mutant form of Feline Infectious Peritonitis virus (FIPV) and has been reported to occur worldwide in domestic cats and massive wild feline species. Meanwhile a definitive diagnosis of FIPV ante mortem remains challenging. The objective was to develop a qPCR for the detection of FIPV in cats and applied the assay to detected the viral loads in different autopsied organs of a cat naturally infected with FIPV. Results: After genetic comparison, We develop a SYBR Green I based quantitative transcription PCR assay (qPCR) targeting the structural protein N of FIPV. The sensitivity of the new assay in detecting FIPV nucleic acids was approximately 1000 times higher than that of the conventional RT-PCR assay (PCR). There were no cross-reactions with other common viruses. Organ assay showed that FIPV were present in the Heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, duodenal and ascites of the autopsied cat. Histological lesions showed that macrophages, non-toxic neutrophils and lymphocytes predominated in different organs which confirmed that the cat was infected with FIPV. Conclusions We developed a quantitative platform for epidemiological investigations study of FIPV that was simple, sensitive, and rapid.

Anthropogenic Infection of Domestic Cats With SARS-CoV-2 Alpha Variant B.1.1.7 Lineage in Buenos Aires

“…SARS-CoV-2 infection was confirmed by RT-qPCR from the OP sample. Due to its bad health condition aggravated by peritonitis (with FIP-negative result by RT-qPCR ( 28 ), this cat was euthanized ( Figure 1 ), and no further studies could be conducted.…”