Saliva TwoStep for rapid detection of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers
- University of Colorado Boulder, United States
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Colorado, United States
- University of Colorado, Boulder, United States
Abstract
Here, we develop a simple molecular test for SARS-CoV-2 in saliva based on reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP). The test has two steps: 1) heat saliva with a stabilization solution, and 2) detect virus by incubating with a primer/enzyme mix. After incubation, saliva samples containing the SARS-CoV-2 genome turn bright yellow. Because this test is pH dependent, it can react falsely to some naturally acidic saliva samples. We report unique saliva stabilization protocols that rendered 295 healthy saliva samples compatible with the test, producing zero false positives. We also evaluated the test on 278 saliva samples from individuals who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 but had no symptoms at the time of saliva collection, and from 54 matched pairs of saliva and anterior nasal samples from infected individuals. The Saliva TwoStep test described herein identified infections with 94% sensitivity and >99% specificity in individuals with sub-clinical (asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic) infections.
Data availability
All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in the manuscript and supporting files.
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Author details
Funding
Burroughs Wellcome Fund (PDEP)
- Nicholas R Meyerson
Burroughs Wellcome Fund (PATH)
- Sara L Sawyer
National Institutes of Health (DP1-DA-046108)
- Sara L Sawyer
The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.
Ethics
Human subjects: This study was approved by the University of Colorado Boulder Institutional Review Board. Saliva samples for assay development were collected under protocol 20-0068. Adult participants were consented verbally and donated up to 2mL of whole saliva for use as a reagent in optimization and limit of detection experiments. Data on human subjects is aggregated from University of Colorado Boulder operational COVID-19 surveillance testing activities. For this reason, the research herein did not fall under IRB purview.
Copyright
© 2021, Yang et al.
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.
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Saliva TwoStep for rapid detection of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers
eLife 10:e65113.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.65113
Further reading
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- Medicine
- Microbiology and Infectious Disease
- Epidemiology and Global Health
- Immunology and Inflammation
eLife has published articles on a wide range of infectious diseases, including COVID-19, influenza, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, malaria and typhoid fever.
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Mycofactocin is a redox cofactor essential for the alcohol metabolism of mycobacteria. While the biosynthesis of mycofactocin is well established, the gene mftG, which encodes an oxidoreductase of the glucose-methanol-choline superfamily, remained functionally uncharacterized. Here, we show that MftG enzymes are almost exclusively found in genomes containing mycofactocin biosynthetic genes and are present in 75% of organisms harboring these genes. Gene deletion experiments in Mycolicibacterium smegmatis demonstrated a growth defect of the ∆mftG mutant on ethanol as a carbon source, accompanied by an arrest of cell division reminiscent of mild starvation. Investigation of carbon and cofactor metabolism implied a defect in mycofactocin reoxidation. Cell-free enzyme assays and respirometry using isolated cell membranes indicated that MftG acts as a mycofactocin dehydrogenase shuttling electrons toward the respiratory chain. Transcriptomics studies also indicated remodeling of redox metabolism to compensate for a shortage of redox equivalents. In conclusion, this work closes an important knowledge gap concerning the mycofactocin system and adds a new pathway to the intricate web of redox reactions governing the metabolism of mycobacteria.
