Colorimetric RT-LAMP Methods to Detect Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)

Abstract

Standard diagnostic methods of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) rely on RT-qPCR technique which have limited point-of-care test (POCT) potential due to necessity of dedicated equipment and specialized personnel. LAMP, an isothermal nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT), is a promising technique that may substitute RT-qPCR for POCT of genomic materials. Here, we provide a protocol to perform reverse transcription LAMP targeting SARS-CoV-2. We adopted both real-time fluorescence detection and end-point colorimetric detection approaches. Our protocol would be useful for screening diagnosis of COVID-19 and be a baseline for development of improved POCT NAAT.

Keywords: COVID-19; Colorimetric detection; LAMP; RT-LAMP; SARS-CoV-2.