2013-Pierce-Accurate Detection and Quantification of the Fish Viral(2)

Accurate Detection and Quantification of the Fish Viral
Hemorrhagic Septicemia virus (VHSv) with a Two-Color
Fluorometric Real-Time PCR Assay
Lindsey R. Pierce1.
, James C. Willey2.
, Vrushalee V. Palsule1
, Jiyoun Yeo2
, Brian S. Shepherd3
,
Erin L. Crawford2
, Carol A. Stepien1
*
1 Great Lakes Genetics/Genomics Laboratory, Lake Erie Center and Department of Environmental Sciences, The University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio, United States of
America, 2 Department of Medicine, The University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio, United States of America, 3 ARS/USDA/University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee/School of
Freshwater Sciences, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States of America
Abstract
Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia virus (VHSv) is one of the world’s most serious fish pathogens, infecting .80 marine,
freshwater, and estuarine fish species from Eurasia and North America. A novel and especially virulent strain – IVb –
appeared in the Great Lakes in 2003, has killed many game fish species in a series of outbreaks in subsequent years, and
shut down interstate transport of baitfish. Cell culture is the diagnostic method approved by the USDA-APHIS, which takes a
month or longer, lacks sensitivity, and does not quantify the amount of virus. We thus present a novel, easy, rapid, and
highly sensitive real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) assay that incorporates synthetic competitive
template internal standards for quality control to circumvent false negative results. Results demonstrate high signal-to-
analyte response (slope = 1.0060.02) and a linear dynamic range that spans seven orders of magnitude (R2
= 0.99), ranging
from 6 to 6,000,000 molecules. Infected fishes are found to harbor levels of virus that range to 1,200,000 VHSv molecules/
106
actb1 molecules with 1,000 being a rough cut-off for clinical signs of disease. This new assay is rapid, inexpensive, and
has significantly greater accuracy than other published qRT-PCR tests and traditional cell culture diagnostics.
Citation: Pierce LR, Willey JC, Palsule VV, Yeo J, Shepherd BS, et al. (2013) Accurate Detection and Quantification of the Fish Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia virus
(VHSv) with a Two-Color Fluorometric Real-Time PCR Assay. PLoS ONE 8(8): e71851. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0071851
Editor: Jianming Qiu, University of Kansas Medical Center, United States of America
Received April 19, 2013; Accepted July 3, 2013; Published August 20, 2013
This is an open-access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for
any lawful purpose. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication.
Funding: This research was funded by the following grants: NOAA Ohio Sea Grant #R/LR-015 (to CAS, JCW), USDA-NIFA (CSREES) #2008-38927-19156, #2009-
38927-20043, #2010-38927-21048 (to CAS, JCW), USDA-ARS CRIS project #3655-31320-002-00D, under the specific cooperative agreement #58-3655-9-748 A01
(to CAS, JCW, BSS), R21 CA 138397 (to JCW), NSF GK-12 #DGE-0742395 (to CAS), and NSF-DDIG #1110495 (to LRP, CAS). The funders had no role in study design,
data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
* E-mail: carol.stepien@utoledo.edu
. These authors contributed equally to this work.
Introduction
Molecular diagnostic tools have facilitated the early detection,
prevention, and spread of many important pathogens [1], led by
the speed, sensitivity, and accuracy of Polymerase Chain Reaction
(PCR)-based assays [2]. Their ability to diagnose targeted genetic
sequences and quantify levels of infectious agents with hybridiza-
tion probes has advanced screening technology for multiple
human diseases, including influenza, hepatitis, and HIV [3,4]. Use
of these approaches to elucidate and characterize plant and animal
pathogens likewise is growing at a rapid pace [5,6].
Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia virus (VHSv) causes one of the
world’s most serious finfish diseases, infecting .80 species across
the Northern Hemisphere [7], yet there remains a need for a fast,
sensitive, accurate, and inexpensive diagnostic test. VHSv is a
negative-sense, single stranded RNA Novirhabdovirus of , 12,000
nucleotides, with six open reading frames of 39N-P-M-G-Nv-L’5
[8]. Infected fishes often swim erratically and have bulging eyes,
distended abdomens, and extensive external/internal hemorrhag-
ing [9]. The virus survives for up to 13 days in the water [10], and
can be spread via ballast water, boating, equipment, and aquatic
animals (e.g. birds, turtles, leeches, and amphipod crustaceans)
[11–14]. It is transmitted most readily during the spring spawning
season through fish waste, reproductive fluids, and skin secretions
[11].
VHSv first was described in the late 1930s as ‘‘Nierenschwel-
lung’’ in aquacultured rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) from
Europe [15]. It now occurs across the Northern Hemisphere as
four genetically and geographically distinct strains (I–IV) and
substrains, whose evolutionary and biogeographic patterns
recently were analyzed by Pierce and Stepien [16]. Strains I–
III primarily occur in Europe, where they infect a wide variety
of marine, estuarine, and freshwater fishes. Strain IV (now
classified as IVa; [17]) first was discovered in 1988 from North
American Pacific coastal fishes, including salmonids [18,19], and
now also occurs in Japan [20]. In 2000, another IV substrain
(now designated as IVc per [16]) was discovered off the coast of
New Brunswick, Canada, infecting the estuarine mummichog
(Fundulus heteroclitus) and three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus
aculeatus) [21]. In 2003, a new and especially virulent substrain,
IVb, was described from a moribund muskellunge (Esox
masquinongy) in Lake St. Clair of the freshwater Laurentian
Great Lakes system [17]. Substrain IVb since has spread
PLOS ONE | www.plosone.org 1 August 2013 | Volume 8 | Issue 8 | e71851

throughout all five of the Great Lakes, infecting .30 species,
including many commercially and ecologically important fishes,
such as muskellunge, drum (Aplodinotus grunniens), walleye (Sander
vitreus), yellow perch (Perca flavescens), and round goby (Neogobius
melanostomus). Substrain IVb now contains at least 16 glycopro-
tein (G)-gene sequence variants [22], whose rapid spread and
diversification in a quasispecies mode suggest that this strain
mutates rapidly and may be highly adaptable (see [16]).
To avoid outbreaks of the virus, the Aquatic Invasive Species
Action Plan [23] requires that aquaculture and baitfish vendors
from U.S. states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New
York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin) and Canadian prov-
inces (Ontario and Quebec) have their fish products certified as
VHSv-free prior to interstate or international transport. Cell
culture is the VHSv diagnostic that is approved by the World
Organization for Animal Health [24], along with the joint Fish
Health Section of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the
American Fisheries Society [25]. The cell culture process takes a
month or longer for cell growth, cell confluency, viral growth, and
confirmation PCR. It moreover lacks the sensitivity to detect low
viral concentrations in carrier fish, and results in false negative
levels reported as 43–95% [26–28].
Real-time quantitative reverse transcription (qRT)-PCR assays
for detecting VHSv [26–34] likewise have substantially high false
negative rates that ranged from 15–92% [26–28]. The high false
negative rates in those assays may have resulted from unknown
and/or unmonitored effects from interfering substances in the
PCR or reverse transcription reactions (rxn), which circumvented
detection of the target gene [35].
To avoid those issues, the present research describes and
evaluates a new, accurate, fast, and highly reliable assay to
diagnose and quantify VHSv. This assay uses Standardized
Reverse-Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction, i.e. StaRT-
PCR, which is a form of competitive template RT-PCR that yields
rapid, reproducible, standardized, and quantitative measurement
of data for many genes simultaneously [36]. StaRT-PCR uniquely
incorporates internal standards (IS) in the rxn mixture to improve
accuracy and circumvent false negative results. Our new assay is
based on real-time PCR equipment that is readily available in
most diagnostic laboratories, markedly improving on a previous
version of our VHSv test [37], which also used StaRT-PCR, but
relied on less common capillary electrophoresis equipment (i.e.
Agilent; Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, CA). In the present
study, results from both assays are evaluated by us to determine
the presence or absence of VHSv and measure concentration of
the virus from fish samples in targeted field and laboratory studies.
We assay the VHSv nucleoprotein (N)-gene and the fish reference
beta-actin 1 (actb1) gene, assessing amplification relative to known
numbers of their respective competitive IS molecules. Our new
approach uses sequence specific fluor-labeled hydrolysis probes
that can be used on a variety of real-time PCR thermal cyclers, on
which positive VHSv results are visible as two colors on the real-
time PCR plot (see Figure 1a; green = native template (NT),
red = IS).
Results of this 2-color fluorometric assay are compared to
those from our previously reported Agilent capillary electropho-
resis test [37], SYBRH green qRT-PCR, and cell culture [24],
using the same biological samples. The numbers of VHSv
molecules are quantified from field-caught and laboratory-
challenged VHSv-infected fish samples with the new 2-color
fluorometric assay in comparison to the Agilent capillary
electrophoresis test [37].
Materials and Methods
VHSv Assay Development
All primers and NT probes were matched to homologous
sequences of the VHSv N-gene, based on all VHSv strains and
substrain variants from NIH GenBank (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.
gov/genbank/) and the literature, using Biosearch Technologies
Real Time Design software (Novato, CA; http://www.
biosearchtech.com/). The original muskellunge isolate MI03GL
from the Great Lakes (GenBank Accession no. DQ427105) served
as the reference for VHSv, and actb1 mRNA from the yellow perch
Perca flavescens (AY332493) was used as the fish reference gene
sequence. Selection criteria included: product lengths that were
,100 bp, with optimal melting temperatures of 65–68uC for
primers and 68–72uC for probes. NT probes for the target and
reference genes were labeled with FAM (fluorescein amidite dye).
The competitive template IS probes for the VHSv N-gene and
the fish reference actb1 gene each were constructed by altering 5–
6 bp of the NT probe sequences, and were labeled with Quasar
dye having 670 nm maximum absorbance (Biosearch Technolo-
gies). The IS probes were designed to: minimize cytosine and
thymine (30%), maximize adenine (50%), avoid guanine at the 59
end, have lengths ,24 bp, and have predicted melting temper-
atures 60.02uC of the NT probe. Synthetic NT and IS templates
for VHSv and actb1 were assembled by combining the forward
primer, probe, and connecting sequence through the reverse
primer (Table 1), and were synthesized by Life Technologies
(Grant Island, NY; http://www.lifetechnologies.com/us/en/
home.html). The BLAST procedure (http://blast.ncbi.nlm.nih.
gov/Blast.cgi) was employed to verify that all primers, probes, and
IS did not recognize other viral or fish DNA sequences.
To ensure that the probes did not bind to non-homologous
template, their specificities were tested using synthetic templates
for the VHSv N- and actb1 genes. Both synthetic templates (NT
and IS) were serially diluted 10-fold from 10211
M to 10215
M
and tested with all probes in PCR amplification experiments,
following the directions for ‘‘Performing the VHSv Assay’’, as
detailed below. For example, the VHS N-gene IS synthetic
template was evaluated with the VHS N-gene IS probe, as well as
the VHS N-gene NT probe, and vice versa. The same was done
for actb1. Cycle thresholds (Ct) from the homologous and non-
homologous templates were compared at each dilution, and the
non-homologous amplifications were calculated with formula
2(2DCt)
and multiplied by the known number of input copies. If
the resulting numbers of molecules were .10% of the known
input copy number, then the probe was re-designed, and the
process was repeated.
After synthesis, the NT and IS for each gene were PCR
amplified (Table 1) in 10 individual 10 ml rxns, containing 1 ml
750 nM of each primer, 0.5 U Go-TAQ polymerase (Promega,
Madison, WI), 1 ml 10X MgCl2 PCR buffer, 0.2 mM dNTPs, and
RNAse-free water on a Rapid Cycler 2 (Idaho Technology, Inc.,
Salt Lake City, UT; www.biofiredx.com/). Rxns were run for 35
cycles of 5 sec at 94uC, 10 sec at 58uC, and 15 sec at 72uC, with a
slope of 9.9. To purify the NT and IS, all 10 replicate PCR
products per template were combined into a single tube, loaded
onto individual 2% low melting pre-cast agarose gels from E-Gel
iBase (Invitrogen, Grand Island, NY; www.invitrogen.com/),
separated by electrophoresis, and visualized on a UV transillumi-
nator. The NT and IS bands for the VHSv N- and actb1 genes
were harvested from their respective gel collection wells. Mean
concentrations (ng/ml) of each were calculated from 1 ml of their
purified products as measured with an Agilent 2100 Bioanalyzer in
VHSv Detection and Quantification

triplicate, and converted into molarities according to the formula
(1):
Molarity tconcentration (mg=ml)s =
tmolecular wt: (mg=mmole)s
ð1Þ
To control for inter-sample and inter-experimental pipetting
variation, a synthetic internal standard mixture (ISM) was created
with the purified IS described above. To prepare the original stock
ISM ‘‘A’’, we estimated the relative concentrations of the VHSv N-
gene and actb1 IS needed to achieve a 1:1 cDNA NT:IS
relationship in a variety of samples (Table 2). Briefly, we mixed
10210
M of the VHSv N-gene IS and 10211
M of the actb1 IS in
an initial stock, labeled ISM ‘‘A’’. To measure various levels of
gene expression, other ISM mixtures (ISM B–H) were constructed
using 10-fold serial dilutions of the VHSv N-gene relative to a
constant concentration of the actb1 gene IS at 10211
M (Table 2).
Additional 10-fold dilutions of each ISM (A–H) stock then were
made with 0.1 ng/ml yeast tRNA carrier (Invitrogen, Carlsbad,
CA) to prevent adherence of negatively charged IS molecules to
the tube or pipette tip surfaces (Table 2, rows 2–8).
Figure 1. Real-time PCR amplification plots for various experiments. ABI 7500 real-time PCR results for (a) a true VHSv positive fish sample,
(b) the relationship between the VHSv Native Template (NT) and Internal Standard (IS) with the NT held constant and the IS varied, (c) the relationship
between VHSv NT and IS with the IS held constant and the NT varied, and (d) the relationship between VHSv NT:IS with concentrations held constant
for dilutions of 1:1–1:20. Green = NT, red = IS, y = fluorescence of the reporter dye minus the baseline (D fluorescence), x = cycle threshold.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0071851.g001

An External Standardized Mixture – ESM (comprised of the
synthesized NT and IS for the VHSv N- and actb1 genes) – was
made to control for inter-lot and inter-experimental variation in
probe fluorescence intensity, guard against inter-experimental
variation in Ct selection, and normalize the probe (see equation
(2), ‘‘Correction for variation in fluorescence among probes’’).
Stock ESM containing 10211
M NT/10211
M IS for the VHSv
N- and actb1 genes was diluted to a working concentration of
10213
M NT/10213
M IS and 10214
M NT/10214
M IS with
yeast tRNA (Invitrogen).
Fish Samples used to Evaluate the VHSv Assay
Spleen tissues from a variety of fish samples were used to test
our assay for the presence and concentration of VHSv (and to
compare our results to other assays, using the same samples). Fish
were obtained, maintained, anesthetized, and sacrificed following
the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)
approved protocols from the University of Toledo (#106419),
Michigan State University (MSU; East Lansing, MI) (#AUF 07/
07-123-00), and the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) Western
Fisheries Research Center Challenge Facility (WFCCF; Seattle,
WA) (#2008-17). Fish were euthanized with an overdose of
25 mg/ml tricaine methanesulfonate (MS-222; Argent Chemical
Lab, Redmond, WA) and decapitated to ensure death. To remove
any external viral particles, each fish was washed separately by
submerging it 3X in double distilled H2O. The surgical site (anus
to operculum) was disinfected with 100% ethanol and betadine
using sterile equipment. Spleen tissue was removed, placed into
individual 1.5 mL eppendorf tubes, flash frozen in liquid nitrogen
or stored in RNAlater (Qiagen), and kept at 280uC until further
processing. Gloves and all equipment were changed between each
fish to ensure sterile conditions. Specimens were disposed of
following the respective approved biohazard protocols of the
University of Toledo, MSU, and USGS.
Samples tested for VHSv included cDNA from 23 wild-caught
Great Lakes fishes, including 10 infected and 13 negatives: two
Table 1. Sequences and PCR parameters for our 2-color fluorometric VHSv assay.
Primers, Probes,
and IS
Nucleotide
position Sequence (59-39) Tm (6C) GC%
Product
length (bp)
N-gene:
pVHS4b F2 316–336 GCC GGA ATC CTT ATG CCG ATG 68.0 57.1 74
pVHS4b R2 367–389 CCC TTG ACG ATG TCC ATG AGG TT 67.0 52.0 74
Housekeeping Gene:
pactb1 F4 1075–1095 CCC ACC AGA GCG TAA ATA CTC 65.5 52.0 92
pactb1 R4 1145–1165 CTC CTG CTT GCT GAT CCA CAT 65.6 52.0 92
Probes:
pVHS 4b 1NT 342–359 ACT GGC CCA GAC TGT CAA 68.5 55.6 18
VHS4b IS 342–358 TGT GGC CGA GTC AGT CC 70.3 64.7 17
pactb1_4 NT 1098–1116 TCT GGA TCG GAG GCT CCA T 71.8 57.9 19
pactb1_4 IS 1098–1117 ACT CGA TTG GAG GGT CCG AC 71.8 60.0 20
Synthetic Templates:
VHS 4b NT 304–416 ACT GGC ATC GAG GCC GGA ATC CTT ATG CCG ATG AAG GAA CTG GCC CAG
ACT GTC AAC GCC GAC AAC CTC ATG GAC ATC GTC AAG GGG GCC CTG ATG
ACG TGT TCC CTT CTG AC
82.2 56.6 113
VHS4b IS2 304–416 ACT GGC ATC GAG GCC GGA ATC CTT ATG CCG ATG AAG GAT GTG GCC GAG TCA
GTC CAC GCC GAC AAC CTC ATG GAC ATC GTC AAG GGG GCC CTG ATG ACG
TGT TCC CTT TCG AC
82.6 58.4 113
pactb1_4 NT 1075–1095 CCC ACC AGA GCG TAA ATA CTC TGT CTG GAT CGG AGG CTC CAT CCT GGC
CTC TCT GTC CAC CTT CCA GCA GAT GTG GAT CAG CAA GCA GGA G
85.3 57.1 91
pactb1_4 IS 1145–1165 CCC ACC AGA GCG TAA ATA CTC TGA CTC GAT TGG AGG GTC CGA CCC TGG CCT
CTC TGT CCA CCT TCC AGC AGA TGT GGA TCA GCA AGC AGG AG
85.5 57.6 92
Primers, probes, internal standards (IS), and synthetic templates are specified. F = forward primer, R = reverse primer, NT = native template. Italics = modified nucleotides
in NT probe.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0071851.t001
Table 2. Concentrations for the 2-color fluorometric VHSv
assay.
A B C D E F G H
211/210 211/
211
211/
212
211/
213
211/
214
211/
215
211/
216
211/
217
212/211 212/
212
212/
213
212/
214
212/
215
212/
216
212/
217
213/212 213/
213
213/
214
213/
215
213/
216
213/
217
214/213 214/
214
214/
215
214/
216
214/
217
215/214 215/
215
215/
216
215/
217
216/215 216/
216
216/
217
217/216 217/
217
Dilution mixtures (A–H) used for the Internal Standards Mixture (ISM) actb1/
VHSv are given in units of 10x
M.

bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), a brown bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus), a
freshwater drum, seven largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), a
smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu), and 11 lake herring
(Coregonus artedi). We also tested 40 fish from VHSv laboratory
challenge experiments, including 20 muskellunge (15 VHSv
infected and 5 negative controls) from the MSU-Aquatic Animal
Health Laboratory (AAHL), and 20 yellow perch (14 VHSv-
infected and 6 negative controls) from USGS-WFRCCF.
A series of laboratory challenge experiments were conducted by
MSU-AAHL on certified VHSv-free juvenile muskellunge (Rath-
burn National Fish Hatchery, Moravia, Iowa) under MSU
IACUC protocols AUF 07/07-123-00. Muskellunge were chal-
lenged via water immersion for 90 min with VHSv-IVb (isolate
MI03GL) at 4.06103
pfu/ml, and the negative controls with 1 ml
sterile maintenance minimum essential media. Fish then were
placed into clean VHSv-free water, and later randomly sacrificed
at pre-determined intervals, as previously described.
We also analyzed RNA from a series of juvenile yellow perch
laboratory challenge experiments, using six-month-old (VHSv-
certified-free) Choptank broodstrain [42] from the University of
Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Great Lakes WATER Institute (Milwau-
kee, WI), which were conducted at USGS- WFRCCF under their
2008–17 IACUC protocol. Perch were challenged either via intra-
peritoneal injection of 1.06105
pfu/ml VHSv-IVb (strain
MI03GL) or with immersion for two hours in the same dosage,
while control groups had a dose of minimum essential media. Fish
were selected randomly in days 0–6 for euthanization with
240 mg/L MS-222 and 1.2g/L NaHCO3. Dissection followed
protocols described above.
Performing the VHSv Assay
Spleen tissue (0.25–0.50 g) was ground using a sterile mortar
and pestle under liquid nitrogen, and its RNA was extracted with
Table 3. Specificity of the 2-color fluorometric test.
Type Isolate Result
Human:
Encephalomyocarditis virus –
Vesicular Stomatitis virus –
Fish:
Hirame rhabdovirusa
–
Infectious Hematopoietic Necrosis virus (strain 220-90)a
–
Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis virus –
Snakehead rhabdovirusa
–
Spring Viremia of Carp virusa
–
VHSv:
I DK-F1b
+
Ia FR0771b
+
Ia JP96KRRV9601b
+
II FI-ka663-06c
+
III GH35d
+
III GH 44d
+
III SC2645d
+
III SM2897d
+
IVa Bogachielb
+
IVa Cod’91b
+
IVa Elliott Bayb
+
IVa JP96Obamab
+
IVa Makahb
+
IVa Orcasb
+
IVb MI03GLa,b
+
IVb vcG002a
+
IVb vcG003a
+
IVb vcG004a
+
IVb vcG005a
+
IVb vcG006a
+
IVb vcG007a
+
IVb vcG008a
+
IVb vcG009a
+
IVb vcG010a
+
IVc CA-NB00-02e
+
– = negative result (no amplification), + = positive result.
Isolates obtained from:
a
Western Fisheries Research Center, USGS, Seattle, WA, USA.
b
Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Ithaca, NY, USA.
c
Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira, Finland.
d
Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
e
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological Station, BC, Canada.
Figure 2. True accuracy of the 2-color fluorometric test. Results
are based on % positives from 10 separate runs of 12 dilutions using a
known Internal Standard Mixture (ISM). Dilutions are: 40, 20, 10, 7, 6, 5,
4, 2, 1, 0.7, 0.4, and 0.1 molecules. The 2-color fluorometric test yields
100% positives for (a) $ 5 molecules of VHSv and (b) $ 4 molecules for
actb1.

the TriREAGENTH (Molecular Research Center, Inc., Cincin-
nati, OH) protocol. The RNA was re-suspended in 30 ml RNase-
free water, quantified with a NanoDrop 2000 Spectrophotometer
(Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, MA), and adjusted to a 1 mg
RNA/ml concentration. DNA-free DNase Treatment and Removal
Reagents (Ambion Life Technologies, Grand Island, NY) were
used to eliminate any contaminating gDNA. The purified RNA
was reverse-transcribed to cDNA with 1 mg RNA, 5X First Strand
buffer, 10 mM dNTPs, 0.05 mM random hexamers, 25 U/ml
RNasin, and 200 U/ml M-MLV in a 90 ml rxn volume at 94uC for
5 min, 37uC for 1 h, and 94uC for 5 min. The cDNA was stored
at –20uC.
A set of PCR rxns was run per each cDNA sample to determine
the appropriate concentrations of NT and IS for actb1 to achieve a
ratio of .1:10 and ,10:1 of amplified products. Once the NT:IS
products were in balance, the VHSv N- and actb1 target genes
were pre-amplified simultaneously to increase the signal (i.e. lower
Ct) relative to non-specific background.
For each pre-amplification, a 10 ml volume of a master mixture
was prepared with 5 ml TaqManH Universal Master Mix II
(without uracil N-glycosylase; Applied Biosystems International
(ABI), Grand Island, NY), 1 ml of 10X primer solution (final
concentration: 75 nM) of the forward and reverse primers for the
VHS N and actb1 genes (mixed together), and RNAse-free water.
Eight ml of this master mixture was dispensed into individual wells
of 0.1 mL 96-well TempPlateH (USA Scientific, Inc.; www.
usascientific.com/) containing 1 ml cDNA and 1 ml of the
appropriate ISM concentration (Table 2). This was done in
triplicate to allow calculation of the mean and standard error (S.E.)
of the relative VHSv N-gene concentration/106
actb1 molecules
per fish sample. The plates then were sealed with a TempPlateH
RT Optical Film and centrifuged for 2 min at 2000 rpm. PCR
rxns were conducted on an ABI 7500 Fast using standard mode
cycling conditions: 10 min at 95uC, followed by 13 cycles of 15 sec
at 95uC and 1 min at 60uC. For the Poisson distribution
experiments, 25 pre-amplification cycles were used due to lower
Figure 3. Relationship between the number of observed and expected molecules for NT:IS concentrations of 1:1–1:20. The
concentration of Native Template (NT) is held constant and the Internal Standard (IS) varied for dilutions of: 1:1 (66104
molecules), 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, 1:5,
1:6, 1:7, 1:8, 1:9, 1:10, 1:12, 1:14, 1:16, 1:18, and 1:20 (36103
molecules). The 2-color fluorometric assay yields a linear relationship for (a) VHSv (R2
= 0.99,
F = 1514.00, df = 1, 13, p,0.001) with a mean CV of 5% for dilutions 1:1–1:10 and 7% for concentrations down to 1:20, and for (b) actb1 (R2
= 0.99,
F = 1283.00, df = 1, 13, p,0.001), CV = 5% and 7%. The same linear pattern is observed when the IS was held constant and NT varied for (c) VHSv
(R2
= 0.99, F = 5124.00, df = 1, 13, p,0.001), CV = 5% for 1:1–1:10 and 7% for dilutions down to 1:20, and (d) actb1 (R2
= 0.99, F = 2434.00, df = 1, 13,
p,0.001), CV = 3% and 6%. Error bars = standard error of results for triplicate runs. Dotted line = partition of dilutions from 1:1–1:10 (right) and 1:12–
1:20 (left).

amount of starting template. Three no-template controls per rxn,
located on separated areas on the plate, were used to control for
possible contamination.
A second round of amplification was performed, in which each
pre-amplified sample was diluted 1000-fold with TE buffer
(10 mM Tris-Cl, 0.1 mM EDTA, pH 7.4); 2 ml of each diluted
product was placed into each well of a new 0.1 mL 96-well
TempPlateH, along with 18 ml of a master mixture containing
10 ml TaqManH Universal Master Mix II (without uracil N-
glycosylase), 2 ml of each 10X primer solution (final concentration:
750 nM), 2 ml of each NT and IS probe (final concentration:
200 nM), and RNAse-free water. This second amplification was
conducted as described above, except run for 40 cycles. The
number of VHSv molecules/106
actb1 molecules was calculated
using equations (2) and (3) below.
Measured NT molecules for the VHSv N and actbt1 genes :
að Þ Correction for variation in fluorescence among probes~
the mean of two ESM concentrations
measured NT cycle threshold Ctð Þ½ Š- measured IS Ct½ Šf g:
bð Þ Measured NT signal relative to the IS
signal for each gene
DCtð Þ~each gene NT Ct½ Š- IS Ct½ Šf g-normalizing value
cð Þ Measured NT molecule copy number~
# input IS molecules from ISM½ Š| 2 -DCtð Þ
h i
ð2Þ
Figure 4. Relationship between the numbers of observed versus expected molecules when NT:IS concentrations are 1:1. Results are
based on dilutions of the Native Template (NT) and Internal Standard (IS) of 66106
, 66105
, 66104
, 66103
, 66102
, 60, 6, and 0.6 molecules for VHSv
and actb1. The 2-color fluorometric assay yields a linear relationship for (a) VHSv over seven orders of magnitude (from 66106
to 66100
VHSv
molecules) with a slope of 1.00 (R2
= 0.99, F = 9404.00, df = 1, 5, p,0.001), and mean CV of 9%. A linear trend also is obtained for (b) actb1 (R2
= 0.99,
F = 1347.00, df = 1, 5, p,0.001). Slope = 1.04, mean CV = 10%. Error bars = standard error of triplicate runs.

Final number of molecules for the target VHSv
N gene and reference actb1 gene :
VHSv molecules

106
actb1 molecules~
VHSv measured NT½ Š= actb1 measured NT½ Š|106
ð3Þ
Specificity, True Accuracy, and Linearity
Our assay was tested for non-specific amplification using two
human viruses (Encephalomyocarditis virus and Vesicular Stoma-
titis virus) and five fish viruses related to VHSv (Hirame
rhabdovirus, Infectious Hematopoietic Necrosis virus, Infectious
Pancreatic Necrosis virus, Spring Viremia of Carp virus, and
Snakehead rhabdovirus). The Snakehead rhabdovirus is the
nearest relative to VHSv, with 62% sequence similarity [8,16].
Twenty-five VHSv isolates were tested to evaluate amplification
across a range of European, Asian, and North American variants
(Table 3), encompassing all four strains. All samples were assayed
in triplicate.
To measure true accuracy – the agreement between a
measurement and its known value [38] – the relationship between
the observed versus expected numbers of VHSv N-gene and actb1
molecules based on Poisson analysis was determined [39]. Ten
replicates were amplified for the VHSv N- and actb1 genes over a
series of limiting PCR dilutions, which were predicted to contain
40, 20, 10, 7, 6, 5, 4, 2, 1, 0.7, 0.4, and 0.1 molecules. Linear
regression analysis was performed in the R statistical software suite
v2.15.2 [40]. A x2
test (in Microsoft Excel) compared the number
of molecules measured with the 2-color fluorometric assay versus
those from the Agilent 2100 Bioanalyzer, at the same dilutions.
Linearity was measured over two series of dilution experiments
to: 1) determine the maximum and minimum ratio of NT to IS
that produced reproducible results, and 2) verify that our test
Figure 5. Relative numbers of VHSv positives and negatives from our 2-color fluorometric and capillary electrophoresis StaRT-PCR
assays, which indicates identical numbers of positives and negatives. Compared to these tests, for 43 fishes (25 positives, 18 negatives
(including 5 laboratory controls)), (a) SYBRH green has 44% false negative error (x2
= 5.67, df = 1, p = 0.02), and cell culture has 56% error (x2
= 9.36,
df = 1, p = 0.002). For 63 fish samples (39 positives, 24 negatives (including 11 laboratory controls)), (b) SYBRH green qRT-PCR has 33% false negative
error (x2
= 5.37, df = 1, p = 0.02), whereas the 2-color fluorometric and capillary electrophoresis tests show zero false negatives.

followed a linear trend in calculating the expected number of
molecules per dilution. The first dilution set was made by mixing a
constant amount of synthetic NT with decreasing amounts of IS to
generate dilutions of: 1:1 (66104
molecules), 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, 1:5, 1:6,
1:7, 1:8, 1:9, 1:10, 1:12, 1:14, 1:16, 1:18, and 1:20 (36103
molecules) for both genes. Identical procedures were performed by
holding the IS constant, while varying the NT. The second
dilution series evaluated linearity for the VHSv N- and actb1 genes
using 10-fold serial dilutions of the ESM at a 1:1 ratio, with
dilutions of 66106
, 66105
, 66104
, 66103
, 66102
, 60, 6, and 0.6
molecules. Regression analyses were conducted to determine
correlation (R2
), slope (linearity), and relation to a linear trend (F)
among the various dilutions of NT:IS and IS:NT for each gene.
Imprecision was reported as the coefficient of variation (CV),
calculated as the standard deviation divided by the mean of
triplicate measurements at each dilution (reported in %) (in
Microsoft Excel) [41]. In addition, S.E. was calculated for each
sample. For these linearity experiments, PCR was done as
specified above in ‘‘Performing the VHSv Assay’’, but substituting
the cDNA and ISM with either 2 ml of the ESM (from dilution 1)
or a concentration of 1:1 NT/IS (dilution 2). Each dilution was
run in triplicate, with a negative/no template control for each run.
VHSv Detection Comparisons of Our Assay to Others
Results from the new 2-color fluorometric test are compared to
those from our prior Agilent capillary electrophoresis assay [37],
conventional SYBRH green qRT-PCR, and cell culture to
evaluate their relative abilities to detect VHSv in 63 fish samples
(see ‘‘Fish Samples used to Evaluate the VHSv Assay’’). All
samples were analyzed in triplicate and all runs had positive and
negative controls. Each PCR rxn included a known cell culture
positive, a negative VHSv cDNA, and a reagent negative control
(nuclease-free H2O). PCR products were visualized on 1% agarose
gels to confirm positive/negative results. The amount of yellow
perch fish tissue available from the USGS laboratory challenge
experiments precluded analysis with cell culture. x2
tests [43] were
used to compare the results among the approaches.
SYBRH green qRT-PCR experiments used a Mastercycler
Realplex Thermocycler (Eppendorf, Inc., Westbury, NY) in 25 ml
rxns, containing 0.05 mg of each primer (the same primers used for
the Agilent capillary electrophoresis assay [37]), 2 ml cDNA
product, 10 ml SsoFast SYBRH green mix, and RNase-free water.
Amplifications were run on a Mastercycler Realplex Thermo-
cycler (Eppendorf, Inc., Westbury, NY), with initial denaturation
of 5 min at 95uC, followed by 40 cycles of 30 sec at 95uC, and
1 min at 60uC.
Cell culture was performed at MSU’s AAHL by M. Faisal and
R. Kim, following standard OIE [24] procedures. If results were
positive, RNA was extracted from infected cells as described
above, reverse transcribed with Affinity Script Multiple Temper-
ature Reverse Transcriptase PCR (Stratagene, La Jolla, CA), and
amplified following OIE [24].
VHSv Quantification using Our Assay
Positive samples were quantified with our new 2-color
fluorometric real-time PCR assay and compared to our earlier
results from the Agilent capillary electrophoresis procedure [36]
for the 63 test fish, with linear regression in R and an F-test [43].
Numbers of VHSv/106
actb1 molecules were measured in
triplicate, from which means and S.E. were calculated. Relative
numbers of VHSv molecules were compared between laboratory
challenged muskellunge showing clinical signs of infection (e.g.
external hemorrhages; N = 9) versus those without signs (N = 9). A
x2
test (Microsoft Excel) was used to determine if a threshold
number of VHSv molecules characterized the appearance of the
clinical signs. Due to limited sample size, a power analysis
(G*Power2; [44]) was used to estimate the number of fish needed
to achieve 95% confidence, with an effect size of 0.50 [45].
Figure 6. Mean log numbers of VHSv molecules/106
actb1 molecules from our new 2-color fluorometric assay versus the prior
Agilent capillary electrophoresis approach. Results indicate a linear relationship between the two tests (R2
= 0.91, df = 1, 38, F = 396.40,
p,0.001) and do not significantly differ (t = 1.42, df = 78, NS). Arrow = Estimated threshold concentration of VHSv for fish with clinical signs of
infection using our new assay, from a x2
test of nine symptomatic fish (16103
VHSv molecules/106
actb1 molecules = 3.66102
VHSv molecules).
Triangle = false negative range for SYBRH green qRT-PCR (1.06100
–1.66102
VHSv/106
–2.56102
VHSv molecules).
Square = false negative range for cell culture (1.06100
–2.26103
VHSv/106
–6.16103
VHSv molecules.

Results
Performance of Our 2-Color Fluorometric Assay for VHSv
Our test results are negative for all other viruses (i.e. did not
result in amplification; Table 3), including human viruses
(Encephalomyocarditis virus and Vesicular Stomatitis virus) and
fish viruses that are related to VHSv (i.e. Hirame rhabdovirus,
Infectious Hematopoietic Necrosis virus, Infectious Pancreatic
Necrosis virus, Spring Viremia of Carp virus, and Snakehead
rhabdovirus). All four VHSv strains (I–IV) and all substrains
evaluated (I, Ia, II, III, IVa, IVb, and IVc) yield positive
amplification results with our test (Figure 1a; Table 3). Thus this
new assay is specific for VHSv.
Amplification results for the VHSv N-gene (Figure 2a) are 100%
(10/10 times) for dilutions of 5–40 VHSv molecules, 90% (9/10
times) for 4 molecules, 80% (8/10) for 2 molecules, 60% (6/10) for
a single molecule, 30% (3/10) for 0.7 molecules, 20% (2/10) for
0.4 molecules, and 10% (1/10) for 0.1 molecules (R2
= 0.98,
F = 541.50, df = 1, 10, p,0.001). Values for amplification of the
fish actb1 gene are similar (Figure 2b), yielding 100% positives for
4–40 molecules (10/10), 70% at 2 molecules (7/10), 40% for a
single molecule and for 0.7 molecules (4/10), 20% for 0.4
molecules (2/10), and 10% at 0.2 molecules (1/10) (R2
= 0.97,
F = 283.60, df = 1, 10, p,0.001). Results indicate that the numbers
of ISM molecules measured by our assay match those from the
bioanalyzer for the VHSv N-gene (x2
= 0.18, df = 11, NS) and the
actb1 gene (x2
= 0.23, df = 11, NS).
The relationship between the amount of PCR product remains
linear when the concentration of NT is held constant and the IS is
varied for both the VHSv N-gene (Figure 3a: R2
= 0.99,
F = 1363.00, df = 1, 13, p,0.001) and the actb1 gene (Figure 3b:
R2
= 0.99, F = 1283.00, df = 1, 13, p,0.001). Figure 1b depicts the
results that illustrate this relationship. The mean calculated CV is
5% for the VHSv N-gene over an NT:IS dilution range of 1:1–
1:10 (yielding 6.06104
60.06100
to 4.66103
62.86102
mole-
cules). The CV likewise is 5% for the actb1 gene (yielding
6.06104
60.006100
to 7.56103
64.36102
molecules). At dilutions
beyond 1:10, the CV increases to 7% for both the VHSv N-gene
(yielding up to 1.56103
61.16102
molecules) and the actb1 gene
(yielding up to 3.06103
61.26102
molecules) when the NT is held
constant.
Analogous results are obtained when the IS is held constant and
the NT is varied for the VHSv N-gene (Figures 1c and 3c:
R2
= 0.99, F = 5124.00, df = 1, 13, p,0.001) and the actb1 gene
(Figure 3d: R2
= 0.99, F = 2434.00, df = 1, 13, p,0.001). The
mean CV for the IS:NT dilution range of 1:1–1:10 is 5% for the
VHSv N-gene (yielding 6.06104
60.06100
to 5.96103
62.26103
molecules) and 3% for the actb1 gene (yielding 6.06104
60.06100
to 4.06103
64.36101
molecules). At dilutions beyond 1:10, the
CV increases to 7% for the VHSv N-gene (yielding up to
2.86103
61.86102
molecules) and 6% for the actb1 gene (yielding
up to 1.46103
66.26101
molecules) when the IS is held constant.
Based on these findings, our quantifications are conducted in the
range of 1:10 to 10:1 NT:IS to maximize accuracy.
Numbers of VHSv molecules show a linear relationship over
seven orders of magnitude (serial dilutions of 66106
to 66100
molecules) when the NT:IS is 1:1 (Figure 4a), with a slope of 1.00
(R2
= 0.99, F = 9404.00, df = 1, 5, p,0.001). Figure 1d illustrates
this relationship, in which NT and IS increase by #3.2 Ct for each
10-fold serial dilution of the ESM. The mean CV for VHSv is
estimated at 7% for samples of 66106
to 66101
molecules
(measured as 6.56106
65.26105
to 7.96101
62.06100
molecules),
and 9% when the range is extended to 66100
molecules (measured
as 6.06100
61.06100
molecules). Results for actb1 have a similar
trend (Figure 4b), with a slope of 1.04 (R2
= 0.99, F = 1347.00,
df = 1, 5, p,0.001), a mean CV of 7% for 66106
to 66101
molecules (measured as 6.66106
62.16105
to 7.86101
68.06100
molecules), and 10% when the range is extended to 66100
molecules (measured as 3.06100
60.46100
molecules). Stochastic
sampling likely contributes to increased CV and S.E. in the
measurements for 6 molecules.
VHSv Detection and Quantification Comparison among
Methods
Results reveal that our present 2-color fluorometric real-time
PCR assay and previous results from the Agilent capillary
electrophoresis-based approach [37] both discriminate identical
positives and negatives (i.e. they have the same accuracy; Figure 5;
x2
= 0.00, df = 1, NS), and are free of false negatives (Figure 5). In
contrast, the cell culture results have 56% false negative error
(Figure 5a: x2
= 9.36, df = 1, p = 0.002) and SYBRH green yields
33–44% false negative error (Figure 5a,b: x2
= 5.37–5.67, df = 1,
p = 0.02). All positives detected by SYBRH green qRT-PCR and
cell culture also are positive with both of our StaRT-PCR methods
(2-color fluorometric real time and capillary electrophoresis). The
false negative range for SYBRH green qRT-PCR is 1.06100
–
1.66102
VHSv/106
actb1 molecules ( = 0.66100
–2.56102
VHSv
molecules, as quantified by our 2-color fluorometric method) and
1.06100
–2.26103
VHSv/106
actb1 molecules ( = 0.66100
–
6.16103
VHSv molecules, as quantified by our 2-color fluoro-
metric method) for cell culture. True negatives (including
experimental controls) are negative with all assays; i.e. we find
no false positives and no contamination.
Numbers of VHSv molecules/106
actb1 molecules measured from the
spleen tissues of positive fish are higher in the new assay, ranging to
1.216106
VHSv molecules/106
actb1 (=1.906104
VHSv molecules)
than for the Agilent capillary-based test, which range to 8.46105
VHSv
molecules/106
actb1 (=2.76103
VHSv molecules). However, both sets of
values have a direct linear relationship (Figure 6: R2
=0.91, df=1, 38,
F=396.40, p,0.001, t=1.42, df=78, NS). Muskellunge exhibiting
clinical signs of infection contain a greater mean number of viral molecules
(1.46105
66.56103
VHSv/106
actb1 molecules=6.96104
66.96103
VHSv molecules) than those without (1.26104
61.76103
VHSv/106
actb1 molecules=1.56103
61.66102
VHSv molecules). The estimated
threshold at which those individuals display clinical signs of infection is ,
16103
VHSv/106
actb1 molecules (=3.66102
VHSv molecules) using
our assay. Our sample sizes are not sufficient to further evaluate the
relationship between this threshold number of molecules and clinical
diagnosis (x2
=0.09, df=1, NS). Power analysis estimates that 52 fish
samples (26 with and 26 without clinical signs) would be needed to verify
this finding.
All data and analyses are publically accessible on the University
of Toledo Lake Erie Center’s VHSv webpage (http://www.
utoledo.edu/nsm/lec/research/glgl/VHS/VHS_main.html).
Discussion
Disease diagnostic laboratories depend on rapid, sensitive, and
accurate detection methods, which are easy to employ and cost-
effective. Cell culture is the VHSv diagnostic approved by the
World Organization of Animal Health [24], which takes up to a
month to perform in clinical settings and often results in
substantial false negatives – as revealed here and by other studies
[26–28]. Compared with traditional cell culture, all PCR-based
assays [32] – including the present one – show enhanced ability to
detect VHSv since they amplify both the negative-strand non-
replicating genomic RNA and the positive-strand replicating
mRNA transcripts. Amplification of both transcripts may be

beneficial since positive results may denote new spread of VHSv or
latent cases in the geographic region where the samples are taken.
This can aid in diagnosis of viral infections.
The present assay detects and quantifies VHSv-IVb in fishes
from the Great Lakes using primers and probes that are
homologous to the N-gene sequence of the widespread IVb isolate
MI03GL and matches conserved sequence regions among all
VHSv strains and substrains. Results demonstrate cross-reaction
with all other VHSv strains and substrains tested. Other human
and fish viruses do not amplify. Thus, our assay is VHSv-specific
and detects all of its known variants.
Other PCR tests developed for VHSv by Chico et al. [26],
Lo´pez-Va´zquez et al. [27], Liu et al. [29], Matejusova et al. [30],
Cutrıń et al. [31], Hope et al. [32], Garver et al. [33], and
Jonstrup et al. [28], culminated in high numbers of false negatives,
analogous to the SYBRH green test evaluated here (33–44% false
negatives). Notably, 15–90% false negatives were reported by
Lo´pez-Va´zquez et al. [27], 25–92% by Chico et al. [26], and
values to 42% by Jonstrup et al. [28] for their respective
approaches. Unlike those other real-time PCR tests for VHSv
[26–34], our method incorporates intrinsic quality control
standards (IS) to circumvent false negative results.
Specifically, exogenous (IS) and endogenous controls (the
commonly used reference gene actb1) facilitate optimal detection
of true positives and act to normalize the quantification of viral
molecules. Use of IS is recommended by the International
Organization for Standardization [46], the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency [47], and the U.S. Food and Drug Adminis-
tration [48]. Tests for Hepatitis C virus [49] and Human
Immunodeficiency virus [50,51] already have implemented IS in
their assays.
Our assay is sensitive, follows a linear relationship with
increasing viral concentration, and is highly reproducible. It
detects down to five VHSv N-gene molecules with 100% accuracy,
based on Poisson distribution. Other real-time PCR assays for
VHSv had much higher detection thresholds. Notably, Liu et al.’s
[29] test required $140 viral copies of VHSv, and assays by Hope
et al. [32] and Garver et al. [33] needed $100 viral copies. Our
results are consistent for samples containing six to 6,000,000
VHSv molecules. Stochastic variation is evident only at extremely
low dilutions (, five molecules). Results confirm reliability from
concentrations of 1:1 to 1:20 NT:IS, with some slight increase in
CV at dilutions .1:10. We thus recommend adjusting the relative
concentrations of NT:IS to maximize accuracy, following recom-
mendations in the Materials and Methods section ‘‘Performing the
VHSv Assay’’. All quantification values reported here fall within
this 1:10 range, which allows us to distinguish , a 1.25-fold Ct
difference. Our assay also should work well with highly degraded
samples (e.g. dead fish in the field), as described for human cancer
samples using this type of approach by some of our team members
[unpublished data].
This 2-color fluorometric real-time assay is highly accurate and
free of the size separation steps required for our previously-
published Agilent capillary electrophoresis approach [37]. Here
we determine higher numbers of VHSv molecules for the same
fish samples, due to the re-design of primers and use of fluorescent-
labeled probes. Results from both methods have a linear
relationship and are readily cross-calibrated.
Laboratory challenged muskellunge showing clinical signs of
infection have a greater mean number of viral molecules than
those without. It is estimated that , 16103
VHSv/106
actb1
molecules ( = 3.66102
VHSv molecules) appears to mark a clinical
threshold for signs of VHSv. However, exhibition of clinical signs
at this biomarker could be species-specific, and may differ between
fish in the laboratory and those in the field. Further experiments
are warranted to validate this assumption.
Conclusions
Our assay is highly sensitive and accurate, free of false negatives,
and reliably quantifies a wide range of VHSv in fish tissue samples.
Other PCR-based methods and cell culture techniques had high
proportions of false negatives since they lacked intrinsic quality
control, which could lead to spread of the virus. This new test will
aid rapid, accurate, and low-cost diagnosis of the disease. It has
wide applicability across the geographic range of the virus, and
should be highly successful in elucidating new occurrences and
circumventing spread.
Acknowledgments
This is contribution #2013–18 from the University of Toledo’s Lake Erie
Research Center. We thank T. Blomquist and L. Stanoszek for assistance,
and P. Uzmann and M. Gray for logistic support. I. Bandıń of Universidad
de Santiago de Compostela (La Corunã, Spain), P. Bowser of Cornell
University (Ithaca, NY), T. Gadd of the Finnish Food Safety Authority
Evira (Helsinki, Finland), K. Garver of Fisheries and Oceans (Ottawa,
Canada), F. Goetz of NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center
Manchester Research Station (Port Orchard, WA), D. Leaman of the
University of Toledo (Toledo, OH), and G. Kurath and J. Winton of
USGS (Seattle, WA) provided VHSv samples. The views contained in this
document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as
necessarily representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of
the U.S. Government. Mention of trade name, proprietary product, or
specific equipment does not constitute a guarantee or warranty by the
USDA and does not imply its approval to the exclusion of other products
that may be suitable.
Author Contributions
Conceived and designed the experiments: CAS JCW BSS. Performed the
experiments: LRP VVP. Analyzed the data: LRP VVP JY. Wrote the
paper: LRP CAS JCW BSS. Trouble-shooting: ELC.
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