Development and evaluation of a multiplex PCR for differentiation of foot-and-mouth disease virus strains native to India

A multiplex PCR (mPCR) for the differentiation of Indian FMDV serotypes, O, A, Asia 1 and C was developed and evaluated on 142 clinical and 39 cell culture samples. On the latter samples both the tests worked well with 100% efficiency, whereas on clinical samples mPCR had better efficiency than ELISA. The test was found to be specific for FMDV. The detection limit of the assay was varied among the serotypes; it was most sensitive on types A and Asia 1 and least sensitive on type C. The mPCR clearly identified the serotype and in some cases detected dual infections. The test is sensitive and reliable and can be used for serotyping of ELISA negative samples.