Molecular characterization of chikungunya virus in febrile patients from central Kerala by RT-PCR assay
Chikungunya fever, caused by infection with mosquito borne alphavirus is an acute nonfatal illness characterized by fever, rash, myalgia, arthralgia and sometimes inflammatory arthritis. During 2007, central Kerala experienced a chikungunya fever epidemic of unprecedented magnitude. There were unusual skin manifestations like peeling of scrotal skin, non-healing ulcer and soft tissue necrosis. cDNA copy of a portion of the viral genome was synthesized in a reverse transcription reaction in the presence of specific primers for the E1 region of the S27 African strain of chikungunya virus (CHIKV) followed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification.