The world is exposed to a large number of pathogens that are primarily responsible for variety of diseases in humans and animals. These pathogens are divided into five broad categories such as viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa and worms. They enter the human body and utilize the body's resources to replicate, before exiting and infecting a new host, while weakening the immune system. In the class of pathogens, viruses are unique in that they kill host cells. We have been threatened by pathogens for centuries and our ability to reduce morbidity becomes obvious when we examine our average life span. Life expectancy of humans in the early 19th century was 40 years, which increased to 58 years in 1950 and then to 72 years in 1972. This gradual increase is due to better understanding of the biology of these pathogens, along with established methods for their detection and treatment. In 1940, influenza viruses A and B were detected and two vaccine protections against them were discovered in 1942. The H2N2 virus of 1957 resulted in deaths globally and led to the discovery of an antiviral medication in 1966. Another pandemic caused by H3N2 influenza virus resulted in several deaths in the United States and worldwide. The 2009 human influenza A H1N1 virus caused an annual global attack rate of 5%-10% in adults and 20%-30% in children; in one year (April 2009 to April 2010), 60.8 million cases were identified with a large number of deaths occurring in USA (https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pande mic-resou rces/2009-h1n1-pande mic.html, https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pande mic-resou rces/pande mic-timel ine-1930-and-beyond.html). Influenza virus infection occurred via inhalation of virus laden particles or direct contact with virus contaminated surfaces (Choi et al., 2002; Couch, 2003). The solution to the problem of virus attack is to detect them with precautions to suitably control or eliminate them. This review is oriented towards the detection of the viruses. 2 | ME THODOLOGY FOR DE TEC TION OF VIRUS E S Historically, respiratory virus infections have been diagnosed by a combination of techniques such as enzyme immune assay, direct fluorescence antibody, staining, cell culture and nucleic acid amplification