The polymerase chain reaction: Application to nervous system disease

Darnell, Robert B.

doi:10.1002/ana.410340404

Cited by 27 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 138 publications

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“…tuberculosis, viruses and other organisms that cause chronic meningitis. 12 We observed three types of response to steroids. One group of patients had a monophasic illness which was controlled by a single course of steroids.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Idiopathic steroid responsive chronic lymphocytic meningitis—clinical features and long‐term outcome in 17 patients

Charleston

Anderson

Willoughby

1998

Australian and New Zealand Journal of Medicine

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Idiopathic steroid responsive chronic lymphocytic meningitis—clinical features and long‐term outcome in 17 patients

Charleston

Anderson

Willoughby

1998

Australian and New Zealand Journal of Medicine

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“…NA amplification-based techniques have become the test of choice for some viral CNS infections, such as HSE (Darnell, 1993;Tyler, 1994;Weber et al, 1996;Cinque et al, 1996a). Furthermore, they have been useful to establish a viral etiology in neurological syndromes of dubious origin, e.g., Mollaret's meningitis (Tedder et al, 1994), or to help recognise unusual or poorly characterised CNS diseases, such as mild forms of herpes encephalitis (Schlesinger et al, 1995a;DeVincenzo and Thorne, 1994;Domingues et al, 1997;Fodor et al, 1998) or cytomegalovirus (CMV) ventriculoencephalitis in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients (Arribas et al, 1996).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular analysis of cerebrospinal fluid in viral diseases of the central nervous system

Cinque

Bossolasco

Lundkvist

2003

Journal of Clinical Virology

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The use of nucleic acid (NA) amplification techniques has transformed the diagnosis of viral infections of the central nervous system (CNS). Because of their enhanced sensitivity, these methods enable detection of even low amounts of viral genomes in cerebrospinal fluid. Following more than 10 years of experience, the polymerase chain reaction or other NA-based amplification techniques are nowadays performed in most diagnostic laboratories and have become the test of choice for the diagnosis of several viral CNS infections, such as herpes encephalitis, enterovirus meningitis and other viral infections occurring in human immunodeficiency virus-infected persons. Furthermore, they have been useful to establish a viral etiology in neurological syndromes of dubious origin and to recognise unusual or poorly characterised CNS diseases. Quantitative methods have provided a valuable additional tool for clinical management of these diseases, whereas post-amplification techniques have enabled precise genome characterisation. Current efforts are aiming at further improvement of the diagnostic efficiency of molecular techniques, their speed and standardisation, and to reduce the costs. The most relevant NA amplification strategies and clinical applications of to date will be the object of this review.

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“…DNA, RNA) or their expression as messenger RNA (mRNA) play a role. PCR is useful to study congenital diseases, malignancies, autoimmune disorders, and infections (23); PCR aids in diagnosis, therapy, disease classification, epidemiology, and basic research. In infectious disorders, PCR is ideally suited for identifying fastidious organisms that may be difficult, or impossible, to culture (24).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polymerase Chain Reaction as a Diagnostic Adjunct in Herpesvirus Infections of the Nervous System

Kleinschmidt-DeMasters¹,

DeBiasi²,

Tyler

2001

Brain Pathology

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Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a powerful technique that allows detection of minute quantities of DNA or RNA in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), vesicle and endoneurial fluids, blood, fresh-frozen, and even formalin-fixed tissues. Various infectious agents can be detected with high specificity and sensitivity, including bacteria, parasites, rickettsia and viruses. PCR analysis of CSF has revolutionized the diagnosis of nervous system viral infections, particularly those caused by human herpesviruses (HHV), and has now replaced brain biopsy as the gold standard for diagnosis of herpes simplex virus (HSV) encephalitis. PCR analysis of both CSF and nervous system tissues has also broadened our understanding of the spectrum of disease caused by HSV-1 and -2, cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), varicella zoster virus (VZV), and HHV-6. Nonetheless, positive tissue PCR results must be interpreted cautiously, especially in cases that lack corroborating clinical and neuropathologic evidence of infection. Moreover, positive PCR results from tissues do not distinguish latent from productive (lytic) viral infections. In several neurological diseases, negative PCR results have provided strong evidence against a role for herpesviruses as the causative agents. This review focuses on the use of PCR tests to diagnose HSV and VZV infections of the nervous system.

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The polymerase chain reaction: Application to nervous system disease

Cited by 27 publications

References 138 publications

Idiopathic steroid responsive chronic lymphocytic meningitis—clinical features and long‐term outcome in 17 patients

Idiopathic steroid responsive chronic lymphocytic meningitis—clinical features and long‐term outcome in 17 patients

Molecular analysis of cerebrospinal fluid in viral diseases of the central nervous system

Polymerase Chain Reaction as a Diagnostic Adjunct in Herpesvirus Infections of the Nervous System

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