Rapid molecular detection of Zika Virus in acute-phase urine samples using the recombinase polymerase amplification assay
Citation: Abd El Wahed A, Sanabani SS, Faye O, et al. Rapid Molecular Detection of Zika Virus in Acute-Phase Urine Samples Using the Recombinase Polymerase Amplification Assay. PLoS Currents. 2017;9.
Free to view: Yes.
The development of a recombinase polymerase amplification assay is a promising platform for rapid point of need detection of ZIKV in low resource settings and elsewhere (e.g. during mass gathering).
A rapid point-of-care test is needed to detect zika virus, especially at low resource settings. A recombinase polymerase amplification assay was developed for zika virus DNA in urine samples. The clinical performance of the assay was evaluated on 25 acute-phase (2-10 days of onset of symptoms) urine samples collected from suspected cases at the Municipal Hospital of Tuparetama, Pernambuco, Brazil. All results were compared with a real-time RT-PCR as gold standard. The limit of the detection of the assay was 21 RNA copies/reaction. The RT-RPA identified 23/25 (Sensitivity: 92%) positive and 9/9 (specificity: 100%) negative samples.