Repurposing a SARS-CoV-2 surveillance program for infectious respiratory diseases in a university setting

Frontiers in Public Health

Public Health

Rachel Ham¹  Tyler Bowie¹  Erika Teetsel¹  Isaac Lee¹  Congyue Peng²  Kylie L. King²  Delphine Dean²  Austin Smothers² 

[1] Center for Innovative Medical Devices and Sensors (REDDI Lab), Clemson University, Clemson, SC, United States;Center for Innovative Medical Devices and Sensors (REDDI Lab), Clemson University, Clemson, SC, United States;Department of Bioengineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, United States;

关键词: SARS-CoV-2;    influenza;    flu;    virus;    surveillance testing;    saliva;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpubh.2023.1168551

 received in 2023-02-17, accepted in 2023-08-16,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Standard multiplex RT-qPCR diagnostic tests use nasopharyngeal swabs to simultaneously detect a variety of infections, but commercially available kits can be expensive and have limited throughput. Previously, we clinically validated a saliva-based RT-qPCR diagnostic test for SARS-CoV-2 to provide low-cost testing with high throughput and low turnaround time on a university campus. Here, we developed a respiratory diagnostic panel to detect SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and B within a single saliva sample. When compared to clinical results, our assay demonstrated 93.5% accuracy for influenza A samples (43/46 concordant results) with no effect on SARS-CoV-2 accuracy or limit of detection. In addition, our assay can detect simulated coinfections at varying virus concentrations generated from synthetic RNA controls. We also confirmed the stability of influenza A in saliva at room temperature for up to 5 days. The cost of the assay is lower than standard nasopharyngeal swab respiratory panel tests as saliva collection does not require specialized swabs or trained clinical personnel. By repurposing the lab infrastructure developed for the COVID-19 pandemic, our multiplex assay can be used to provide expanded access to respiratory disease diagnostics, especially for community, school, or university testing applications where saliva testing was effectively utilized during the COVID-19 pandemic.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 King, Ham, Smothers, Lee, Bowie, Teetsel, Peng and Dean.