Molecular techniques for the genomic viral RNA detection of West Nile, Dengue, Zika and Chikungunya arboviruses: a narrative review

Abstract

Introduction: Molecular technology has played an important role in arboviruses diagnostics. PCR-based methods stand out in terms of sensitivity, specificity, cost, robustness, and accessibility, and especially the isothermal amplification (IA) method is ideal for field-adaptable diagnostics in resource-limited settings (RLS).Areas covered: In this review, we provide an overview of the various molecular methods for West Nile, Zika, Dengue and Chikungunya. We summarize literature works reporting the assessment and use of in house and commercial assays. We describe limitations and challenges in the usage of methods and opportunities for novel approaches such as NNext-GenerationSequencing (NGS).Expert opinion: The rapidity and accuracy of differential diagnosis is essential for a successful clinical management, particularly in co-circulation area of arboviruses. Several commercial diagnostic molecular assays are available, but many are not affordable by RLS and not usable as Point-of-care/Point-of-need (POC/PON) such as RReal-TimeRT-PCR, Array-based methods and NGS. In contrast, the IA-based system fits better for POC/PON but it is still not ideal for the multiplexing detection system. Improvement in the characterization and validation of current molecular assays is needed to optimize their translation to the point of care.

Keywords: Arbovirus; Chikungunya; Dengue; West Nile; Zika; diagnostics; molecular techniques.