White spot syndrome virus and infectious hypodermal and hematopoietic necrosis virus simultaneous diagnosis by miniarray system with colorimetry detection

Highly sensitive and specific diagnostic tools are essential for monitoring the health status of farmed species. After the development of genomic probe diagnostic systems in the 1990s, followed by PCR-based systems, a miniarray method has been developed allowing one-step multiple detection. The miniarray method was developed to enable the accessibility of powerful array technology. To use this system, hybridisation and washing process were modified, resulting into a significant increase in the test's rapidity and sensitivity. With miniarray technology, hybridisation time is reduced to 20 min, whereas other methods require a longer hybridisation time. Hybridisation of the PCR product on a nylon membrane and revelation of the hybrids by an antibody increase considerably the ability of pathogen's detection. A first application is developed for the diagnosis of two specific viruses which are, by their geographical range and their impact on the production, very important in shrimp pathology, namely, the White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) and the Infectious Hypodermal and Hematopoietic Necrosis Virus (IHHNV). (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.