Profi ciency of Nucleic Acid Tests for Avian Infl uenza Viruses , Australasia

H pathogenic avian infl uenza (HPAI) virus (H5N1) is endemic among the world’s wild bird populations and continued to spread during 2006 to poultry across Asia, Africa, and mainland Europe (1,2). Sensitive, specifi c diagnostic methods are essential for early accurate detection of HPAI virus in the prepandemic and early pandemic phases in countries where no cases have been recorded, such as Australia (3). Several sublineages of HPAI (H5N1) exist (4,5). Virus mutation requires that nucleic acid testing (NAT) methods such as reverse transcription–PCR (RT-PCR) be continually improved to remain sensitive for emerging strains (6–12). Currently, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends an RT-PCR based on primers published in 1998 (www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/guidelines/ RecAIlabtestsAug07.pdf).

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