RT-PCR and Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry Diagnostic Target Performance Reflects Circulating Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Variant Diversity in New York City

As severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to circulate, multiple variants of concern have emerged. New variants pose challenges for diagnostic platforms because sequence diversity can alter primer/probe-binding sites (PBSs), causing false-negative results. The Agena MassARRAY SARS-CoV-2 Panel (Agena Bioscience) uses RT-PCR and mass spectrometry to detect five multiplex targets across N and ORF1ab genes. Herein, we use a data set of 256 SARS-CoV-2 –positive specimens collected between April 11, 2021, and August 28, 2021, to evaluate target performance with paired sequencing data.

Source: Journal of Molecular Diagnostics - May 4, 2022 Category: Pathology Authors: Matthew M. Hernandez, Radhika Banu, Ana S. Gonzalez-Reiche, Brandon Gray, Paras Shrestha, Liyong Cao, Feng Chen, Huanzhi Shi, Ayman Hanna, Juan David Ram írez, Adriana van de Guchte, Robert Sebra, Melissa R. Gitman, Michael D. Nowak, Carlos Cordon-Cardo, Tags: Regular article Source Type: research