Reverse Transcriptase News and Research

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QuantuMDx receives CE-IVD marking for SARS-CoV-2 detection assay

QuantuMDx Group Limited, a UK-based life sciences company developing transformational point-of-care molecular diagnostics, today announces its SARS-CoV-2 detection assay has been CE-IVD marked under the In Vitro Diagnostics Directive (98/79/EC), enabling use within the European Union.

10 Jun 2020

Universal preoperative screening of pediatric patients for COVID-19 improves safety

Universally screening pediatric patients for COVID-19 before they undergo surgical procedures has allowed hospitals to improve safety by identifying all patients who test positive for the virus, half of whom have no symptoms, according to new research led by Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

4 Jun 2020

Pre-clinical data for Celltrion’s antiviral antibody treatment shows 100-fold reduction in viral load of SARS-CoV-2

Celltrion Group today announced positive pre-clinical results for its COVID-19 antiviral antibody treatment, with data demonstrating a 100-fold reduction in the viral load of SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19.

4 Jun 2020

SARS-CoV-2 RNA in blood tests not associated with infectious virus

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has challenged hospitals and laboratory services worldwide. Diagnostic testing for SARS-CoV-2 initially lagged but is now primarily based on the use of reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to detect viral nucleic RNA in the samples. However, viral RNA has also been reported in several small series of cases, though its significance and frequency remain unclear.

27 May 2020

Researchers warn against false negatives in COVID-19 diagnostic test

One of the most commonly used diagnostic tools, particularly during this pandemic, is the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction test (RT-PCR), which uses a person's respiratory sample to detect viral particles and determine if the person may have been exposed to a virus.

27 May 2020

Researchers create more crucial reagents for use in COVID-19 tests

Researchers in Warwick Medical School at the University of Warwick have developed a way to create more crucial reagents for use in COVID-19 tests that could also provide enhancements to the use of, and production of, future tests.

19 May 2020

Viral shedding among pre-symptomatic COVID-19 patients finds study

Researchers from Bangalore, India, have found that 68 percent of pre-symptomatic patients with COVID-19 may be shedding the virus and potentially infecting others. Their study titled, “Quantitative COVID-19 infectiousness estimate correlating with viral shedding and culturability suggests 68% pre-symptomatic transmissions,” was published on the open-access preprint server Medrxiv.

15 May 2020

Symptomatic COVID-19 patients less likely to be smokers

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages in many parts of the world, a new study shows that smoking may not play a significant role in increasing the severity of illness in these patients. The study is published on the preprint server medRxiv* in May 2020.

12 May 2020

SARS-CoV-2 found in semen of COVID-19 patients

Since the novel coronavirus, now called the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), emerged in December 2019, viral loads have been detected in body fluids, such as urine samples, saliva, stool samples, and in the gastrointestinal tract. Now, a new study reveals the SARS-CoV-2 virus in semen.

7 May 2020

SARS-CoV-2 genome shows mutation hotspots and type-specific distribution

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv reports on a large scale analysis of SARS-CoV-2 genomes and reveals a clonal geo-distribution and rich genetic variations.

5 May 2020

Hydroxychloroquine shown to slow recovery for COVID-19 patients

As researchers try to piece together a therapeutic strategy against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, a recent retrospective study from Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, assessed the Hydroxychloroquine's efficacy in increasing SARS-CoV-2 viral clearance, finding that it appeared to significantly slow viral clearance in mild to moderately ill COVID-19 patients.

5 May 2020

Scientists develop CRISPR-based test for SARS-CoV-2

Now, a team of scientists at the University of California Santa Barbara has developed a low-cost, rapid, and high-tech test that can detect SARS-CoV-2 effectively. They have developed a CRISPR-based test that is sensitive and effective as traditional tests.

4 May 2020

Testing sewage could be useful in monitoring COVID-19 circulation in the population

Researchers in Italy have demonstrated the potential value of sewage system monitoring for studying trends in the circulation of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

30 Apr 2020

Georgia Tech researchers create key components for COVID-19 tests

Gaps in the supply of coronavirus tests are propelling initiatives to fill them across the country. At the Georgia Institute of Technology, bioscience researchers are burning midnight oil to produce key components for tests in the state of Georgia.

23 Apr 2020

Mayo Clinic highlights the impact of false-negative COVID-19 test results

As COVID-19 testing becomes more widely available, it's vital that health care providers and public health officials understand its limits and the impact false results can have on efforts to curb the pandemic.

9 Apr 2020

UC San Diego Health expands COVID-19 testing capacity

From the beginning, the ability of front line clinicians to test patients for COVID-19 -- to determine whether a person is infected with the disease-causing novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2 -- has been part and parcel of the pandemic.

6 Apr 2020

Is coronavirus spread through feces?

A startling study from China, published in the journal Gastroenterology in March 2020, reports that the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 can spread via feces as well as the more familiar respiratory droplet route or from virus-contaminated surfaces.

2 Apr 2020

CDC diagnostic coronavirus test gets FDA emergency approval

In the light of the ongoing novel coronavirus epidemic in China, the US Food and Drug Administration has granted approval of a diagnostic test for use in emergency situations (emergency use authorization or EUA). The viral infection has spread to many different and distant parts of the world, involving over 25,000 people and causing nearly 600 deaths since it started in December 2019.

6 Feb 2020

"Jumping genes" within eggs determine their survival

Females are born with a finite supply of eggs and with age the genetic quality of the eggs decline say researchers from Carnegie Institute. The study from researchers Marla Tharp, Safia Malki, and Alex Bortvin was published in the latest issue of Nature Communications. The study was titled, “Maximizing the ovarian reserve in mice by evading LINE-1 genotoxicity.”

16 Jan 2020

FSU discovery could open the door to new treatment options for HIV, hepatitis B

A discovery by Florida State University College of Medicine researchers is expected to open the door for new and more potent treatment options for many of the more than 36 million people worldwide infected with the HIV virus and for others chronically ill with hepatitis B.

8 Jan 2020