Detection and quantification of poliovirus infection using FTIR spectroscopy and cell culture

Buffalo green monkey kidney (BGMK) cells infected with different virus titers were studied at 1 - 12 hours post-infection (h.p.i.). A partial least squares (PLS) regression method was used to analyze and model cellular responses to different infection titers and times post-infection. The model performs best at 8 h.p.i., resulting in an estimated root mean square error of cross validation (RMSECV) of 17 plaque forming units (PFU)/ml when using low titers of infection of 10 and 100 PFU/ml. Higher titers, from 103 to 106 PFU/ml, could also be reliably detected.This approach to poliovirus detection and quantification using FTIR spectroscopy and cell culture could potentially be extended to compare biochemical cell responses to infection with different viruses. This virus detection method could feasibly be adapted to an automated scheme for use in areas such as water safety monitoring and medical diagnostics.Increased population density and movement of people around the globe have generated a rise in the number of outbreaks of infectious diseases and led to the emergence of new infectious diseases [1]. Worldwide, 3.575 million people die each year from water-related diseases [2]. The water and sanitation crises claim more lives through disease than any warfare [2]. A key step in the prevention of outbreaks of communicable diseases is the early detection of virulent particles [3]. Rapid detection of active viral pathogens is of central importance for public health risk assessment and environmental protection. Waterborne viruses are particularly important for public safety monitoring due to their environmental stability and low infectious dose; a single virion is sufficient to initiate illness in previously unexposed, healthy adults [4].Enteroviruses (family Picornaviridae) are a genus of waterborne viruses that infect humans and other mammals. They are a health problem worldwide, leading to 10 to 15 million cases of symptomatic infection in humans annually in the United S