COVID-19 diagnosis —A review of current methods

Abstract

A fast and accurate self-testing tool for COVID-19 diagnosis has become a prerequisite to comprehend the exact number of cases worldwide and to take medical and governmental actions accordingly. SARS-CoV-2 (formerly, 2019-nCoV) infection was first reported in Wuhan (China) in December 2019, and then it has rapidly spread around the world, causing ~ 14 million active cases with ~ 582,000 deaths as of July 2020. The diagnosis tools available so far have been based on a) viral gene detection, b) human antibody detection, and c) viral antigen detection, among which the viral gene detection by RT-PCR has been found as the most reliable technique. In this report, the current SARS-CoV-2 detection kits, exclusively the ones that were issued an “Emergency Use Authorization” from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, were discussed. The key structural components of the virus were presented to provide the audience with an understanding of the scientific principles behind the testing tools. The methods that are still in the early research state were also reviewed in a subsection based on the reports available so far.

A Smartphone Camera Colorimetric Assay of Acetylcholinesterase and Butyrylcholinesterase Activity

“…The smartphone camera-based colorimetric assay also meets the common requirements and expectations of point-of-care tests: simplicity, portability, no elaborative manipulations with samples, low cost, no use of harmful reagents, etc. [ 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 ]. Additionally, it meets the requirements of thin layer detectors like paper biosensors [ 36 ].…”

Immune profiles of a COVID-19 adolescent with mild symptoms and anti-viral antibody deficiency

“…Interestingly, results from the ELISpot assay targeting S, N, and E proteins indicated that the immunoreactivity to E protein was the strongest ( Figure 1 H). Due to their location and biological function, S and N proteins have been extensively investigated for their humoral and cellular immunogenicity 18 , 19 , 20 , as well as for their applications in diagnosis and antibody development [ 21 , 22 ]. E protein is a structural protein that exists in both monomeric and homo-pentameric forms.…”

A nanoscale genosensor for early detection of COVID-19 by voltammetric determination of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) sequence of SARS-CoV-2 virus

“…All selected oligonucleotides, including the SARS-CoV-2 RdRP, SARS RdRP, and E (envelope protein gene) sequences were provided by Faza Biotech Company (Iran) according to the previous reports [ 1 , 16 , 28 ] as follows: SARS-CoV-2 RdRP (oligonucleotide ID: RdRP_SARSr-P2): 5′-CAGGT GGAAC CTCAT CAGGA GATGC-3′. SARS RdRP: 5′-C CAGGT GGAAC ATCAT CCGGT GATGC-3′.…”