Human rhinovirus C infection is associated with asthma in children determined by xTAG respiratory viral panel FAST

Cumulative evidence supports the role of early-life viral infections, especially respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human rhinovirus (HRV), as major antecedents of childhood asthma (Lemanske, 2002; Jackson et al.,2008). In this study, the xTAG respiratory viral panel FAST (RVP FAST) assay, a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based method (Arens et al., 2010; BaladaLlasat et al., 2011; Gharabaghi et al., 2011; Selvaraju, 2012), was used to investigate the association of infection with different HRV species, especially HRV-C, and the development of asthma in young children living in Beijing, China.