DETECTION OF ENTEROVIRUSES AND HEPATITIS A VIRUS RNA IN COW MILK BY RT-PCR

The aim of the study is to evaluate the precence of Hepatitis A virus (HAV) and enteroviruses (EV) in milk samples. Raw milk and whey samples (n=50), collected from eight different open air markets in Samsun (Turkey) were analysed for HAV and enteroviruses by RT-PCR. Viral RNA was extracted using the rapid acid guanidinium thiocyanatephenol- chloroform method. HAV primers were selected from sequences of the VP2 and VP4 capsid region. Enterovirus primers were selected from the 5ʹ non-translated region, which is the most conserved region in an enterovirus genome. Four samples (8%) raw milk were positive for EV RNA. However, HAV RNA was not determined the milk samples. This is the first report on the detection of HAV and EV RNA in cow milk samples in Turkey. This study highlights the interest for contamination by HAV and EV in milk samples from different areas.