Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

February 10, 2020

Evolving status of the 2019 novel coronavirus Infection: proposal of conventional serologic assays for disease diagnosis and infection monitoring

Category:

Topic:

  • Researchers explain the need for developing serological assays for 2019-nCoV testing. Real-time RT-PCR or next-generation sequencing are the primary methods for confirming 2019-nCoV infection, but with limited supplies, the number of cases that can be tested is restricted and delayed. Researchers propose conventional serological assays as a potential alternative. 
  • A backlog of tests in China produces artificial jumps in daily case reports. 
  • Sensitivity and specificity of the predominant testing methods have not been assessed yet.

Xiao et al. (Feb 7, 2020). Evolving status of the 2019 novel coronavirus Infection: proposal of conventional serologic assays for disease diagnosis and infection monitoring. J Med Virology. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.25702