Detection of All the Four Serotypes of Dengue Virus in New Delhi, India During Post Monsoon Season of 2015

Dengue fever is the most widespread arthropod borne viral infection in India. Delhi, the capital of India is endemic for dengue viruses because all the four serotypes are reported from here. The present report describes the identification of dengue viruses in blood samples collected from suspected patients from New Delhi, India, during post monsoon season of 2015. Dengue virus was detected in 29% of the samples tested by RT-PCR. All the four serotypes of DENV were identified in the study with 66.66% of the samples positive for DENV-2, 22.22% for DENV-1 and 16.7% each for DENV-3 and DENV-4. The pre-dominance of DENV2 serotype was observed in the study. Co-infection with more than one serotype was also observed in 22.22% of the samples with 16.7% samples positive for DENV-1 and DENV-2 and 5.55% for DENV-2 and DENV-4. Our results showed that maximum number of the dengue positive cases was observed in the 21–30 years age group. Further, DNA sequencing of the individual serotypes will provide information on the circulating genotypes in this region. Additionally, correlation of disease severity with different serotypes and concurrent infections will provide intellectual enrichment on the pathogenesis of this viral pathogen. Surveillance and monitoring of the DENV serotypes and their associated genotypes will contribute to formulation of control measures.