Evidence of simian retrovirus type D by polymerase chain reaction

Abstract Background Over the past few years, there have been reports of finding Simian retrovirus type D ( SRV ) in macaque colonies where some animals were characterized as antibody positive but virus negative raising questions about how SRV was transmitted or whether there is a variant strain detected by antibody but not polymerase chain reaction ( PCR ) in current use. Methods We developed a three‐round nested PCR assay using degenerate primers targeting the pol gene to detect for SRV serotypes 1‐5 and applied this newly validated PCR assay to test macaque DNA samples collected in China from 2010 to 2015. Results Using the nested PCR assay validated in this study, we found 0.15% of the samples archived on FTA ® cards were positive. Conclusions The source of SRV infection identified within domestic colonies might have originated from imported macaques. The multiplex nested PCR assay developed here may supplement the current assays for SRV .