Compositions and methods for detecting human metapneumovirus

摘要

Disclosed are oligonucleotides useful in methods for determining whether a sample contains a human metapneumovirus or has an increased likelihood of containing a human metapneumovirus, a virus which is a causative agent of respiratory tract disease in humans. These oligonucleotides, which have nucleotide sequences derived from a coding segment of the gene encoding the fusion protein of a human metapneumovirus, are useful as forward and reverse primers for a polymerase chain reaction using reverse transcripts of RNA from a biological sample as templates, and as probes for detecting any resultant amplicon. Detection of an amplicon indicates the sample contains a human metapneumovirus or has an increased likelihood of containing a human metapneumovirus.