Development of serological diagnostic methods for crimean congo hemorrhagic fever virus infection

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-born viral zoonotic disease that causes hemorrhage and severe illness in humans with high mortality rates. CCHF virus genome consists of three molecules of negative-sense singlestranded RNA, each encapsulated separately. CCHF virus is transmitted to humans through infected tick bites or from direct contact with viremic animals or humans. The disease has been reported in widespread areas of Africa, the Middle East, and Eurasia. A large Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever outbreak occurred in Turkey in 2002. The numbers of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever cases have gradually increased in Turkey making the virus a public health concern. For the detection of anti-CCHFV IgG and IgM, immunofluorescence assays (IFAs) as well as enzyme- linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) have been used for human cases. Virus detection is the primary method of diagnosis of early stage disease. Diagnostic assays for acute Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever infection include virus culture, reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR). Early diagnosis of CCHF is extremely important since there is no spesific treatment for CCHF. Supportive treatment would be effective for the CCHF patients with diagnosed at early stage of the disease. In this study, antigen capture ELISA has been developed for early diagnosis of CCHF for humans. The patient sera obtainedfrom Ankara, Sivas and Samsun have been tested with the antigen capture ELISA and results compared with Vectorbest® Vectocrimean-CHF-Ag ELISA kit. The