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. 2018 Jun;98(6):1640-1642.
doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.18-0071. Epub 2018 Mar 29.

Use of TaqMan Array Cards to Screen Outbreak Specimens for Causes of Febrile Illness in Tanzania

Ahmed Abade  1 , Rachel B Eidex  2 , Athanasia Maro  3 , Jean Gratz  4 , Jie Liu  4 , Ireen Kiwelu  3 , Buliga Mujaga  3 , Maria E Kelly  5 , Blandina T Mmbaga  3 , James J Gibson  2 , Fausta Mosha  5 , Eric R Houpt  4
Affiliations

Use of TaqMan Array Cards to Screen Outbreak Specimens for Causes of Febrile Illness in Tanzania

Ahmed Abade et al. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2018 Jun.

Abstract

We describe the deployment of a custom-designed molecular diagnostic TaqMan Array Card (TAC) to screen for 31 bacterial, protozoal, and viral etiologies in blood from outbreaks of acute febrile illness in Tanzania during 2015-2017. On outbreaks notified to the Tanzanian Ministry of Health, epidemiologists were dispatched and specimens were collected, transported to a central national laboratory, and tested by TAC within 2 days. This algorithm streamlined investigation, diagnosed a typhoid outbreak, and excluded dozens of other etiologies. This method is usable in-country and may be incorporated into algorithms for diagnosing outbreaks.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
TaqMan Array Card layout used for blood specimens in Tanzania, 2015–2017.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Prevalence of pathogens detected by TaqMan Array Card in whole blood from three outbreaks. Note a relative spike in Salmonella in outbreak 1, no pathogens in outbreak 2, and a spike in Plasmodium in outbreak 3. This figure appears in color at www.ajtmh.org.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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