Laboratory testing of SARS‐CoV, MERS‐CoV, and SARS‐CoV‐2 (2019‐nCoV): Current status, challenges, and countermeasures

Abstract

Emerging and reemerging infectious diseases are global public concerns. With the outbreak of unknown pneumonia in Wuhan, China in December 2019, a new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2 has been attracting tremendous attention. Rapid and accurate laboratory testing of SARS-CoV-2 is essential for early discovery, early reporting, early quarantine, early treatment, and cutting off epidemic transmission. The genome structure, transmission, and pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 are basically similar to SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, the other two beta-CoVs of medical importance. During the SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV epidemics, a variety of molecular and serological diagnostic assays were established and should be referred to for SARS-CoV-2. In this review, by summarizing the articles and guidelines about specimen collection, nucleic acid tests (NAT) and serological tests for SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2, several suggestions are put forward to improve the laboratory testing of SARS-CoV-2. In summary, for NAT: collecting stool and blood samples at later periods of illness to improve the positive rate if lower respiratory tract specimens are unavailable; increasing template volume to raise the sensitivity of detection; putting samples in reagents containing guanidine salt to inactivate virus as well as protect RNA; setting proper positive, negative and inhibition controls to ensure high-quality results; simultaneously amplifying human RNase P gene to avoid false-negative results. For antibody test, diverse assays targeting different antigens, and collecting paired samples are needed. K E Y W O R D S

Structure-Based Design with Tag-Based Purification and In-Process Biotinylation Enable Streamlined Development of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Molecular Probes

“…For vaccine development, such probes can be used to define and monitor the elicited responses, and for antibody characterization, such probes can serve as critical molecular tags, facilitating the identification of the highly effective antibodies which could be used for passive therapy (Cao et al, 2020;reviewed in Casadevall et al, 2004;Graham and Ambrosino, 2015;Walker and Burton, 2018). In diagnostics, they can be employed to assess sera reactivity and to provide sensitive markers of infection (Perera et al, 2020;Yan et al, 2020b;Zhao et al, 2020). In pathogenesis, they can assist in delineating susceptible cells that virus might infect or in tracking viral variants, including those that might have selective advantages (Korber et al, 2020).…”

Ideas for how informaticians can get involved with COVID-19 research

“…The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a significant impact on population health and wellbeing. Research efforts are underway to identify vaccines [1], improve testing [2,3], understand transmission [4], develop serologic tests [5], develop therapies [6], predict risk [7], and develop mitigation and prevention strategies [8,9]. Biomedical informatics is central to each of these research efforts and for the delivery of healthcare for COVID-19 patients.…”

ARIMA Models for Predicting the End of COVID-19 Pandemic and the Risk of a Second Rebound

“…IHME COVID-19 health service utilization forecasting team, Christopher JL Murray [15] peaked daily deaths varies from March 30 through May 12 by state in the US and March 27 through May 4 by country in the EEA. They have estimated that through the end of July, there will be 60,308 (34,381) deaths from COVID-19 in the US and 143,088 (101,131-253,163) deaths in the EEA. Deaths from COVID-19 are estimated to drop below 0.3 per million between May 4 and June 29 by state in the US and between May 4 and July 13 by country in the EEA.…”

“…While these control measures appear to have reduced the number of infections to very low levels, without herd immunity against COVID-19, cases could easily resurge as businesses, factory operations and schools gradually resume and increase social mixing, particularly given the increasing risk of imported cases from overseas as COVID-19 continues to spread globally. World leaders and health officials are warning that hard-won gains must not be jeopardized by people relaxing physical distancing measures [33,34].…”