Strain differentiation and characterization of canine parvovirus by PCR and RE mapping

38-42 Canine parvovirus 2 (CPV2) is a highly contagious and fatal disease of dogs, causing acute hemorrhagic enteritis and myocarditis. In this study, different mutant of CPV2 prevalent in India have been isolated in Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells and characterized by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction endonuclease (RE) mapping. The faecal samples from gastroenteritic dog suspected for CPV2 infection were collected in a suitable medium, processed and inoculated in MDCK cells. The viral DNA from faecal samples was extracted using phenol-chloroform method. PCR were carried out with two different primer pairs, pCPV-2ab and pCPV-2b, to distinguish the strain prevalent in field condition. The primer pCPV-2ab recognized both the variant CPV-2a and CPV-2b, whereas the primer pCPV-2b recognized only the variant CPV-2b, enabling the differentiation of CPV-2a variant from CPV-2b in field isolates. The different PCR products were further analyzed by using RE mapping.