Isolation of measles virus from clinical specimens using B95a and Vero/hSLAM cell-lines.

The clinical presentation of acute measles is normally quite typical, especially in the presence of Koplik's spots, that laboratory test is seldom required to confirm the diagnosis. However, with wide measles vaccination coverage and the extensive use of immunosuppressive chemotherapy, the diagnosis of atypical manifestations of acute measles may require laboratory confirmation. When compared with B95a cell-line, this study shows that the Vero/hSLAM cell-line is sensitive and is recommended for use in the primary isolation of wild-type measles virus from clinical specimens.

Chikungunya virus of Central/East African genotype detected in Malaysia.

Since its isolation in Tanzania in 1953, chikungunya virus has caused periodic outbreaks in both tropical Africa and Asia. In the last decade, the virus has shown not only increased activity but has expanded its geographical locations, thus classical delineation of various genotypes of chikungunya virus to specific geographic locales no longer holds true. Rapid mass movement of people and the constant presence of the right vectors in this region could have contributed to the change in virus ecology.