Comparative Clinical Evaluation of a Novel FluA/FluB/SARS-CoV-2 Multiplex LAMP and Commercial FluA/FluB/SARS-CoV-2/RSV RT-qPCR Assays

• Published in: Diagnostics (Basel) Vol. 13; no. 8; p. 1432
• Main Authors: Jee, Hyunseul, Park, Seoyeon, Lee, Junmin, Lim, Chae Seung, Jang, Woong Sik
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01.04.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Antigens; Biochemical assays; Comparative analysis; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Design; Diagnosis; Hospitals; Infections; Influenza; influenza A; influenza B; Laboratories; loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP); Methods; multiplex LAMP; Pandemics; Pathogens; Respiratory syncytial virus; SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Viral infections; Viruses; South Korea; United States > US; SARS-CoV-2; influenza A; multiplex LAMP; influenza B; loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP)
• ISSN: 2075-4418; 2075-4418
• DOI: 10.3390/diagnostics13081432

Influenza and coronaviruses cause highly contagious respiratory diseases that cause millions of deaths worldwide. Public health measures implemented during the current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic have gradually reduced influenza circulation worldwide. As COVID-19 measures have relaxed, it is necessary to monitor and control seasonal influenza during this COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, the development of rapid and accurate diagnostic methods for influenza and COVID-19 is of paramount importance because both diseases have significant public health and economic impacts. To address this, we developed a multi-loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) kit capable of simultaneously detecting influenza A/B and SARS-CoV-2. The kit was optimized by testing various ratios of primer sets for influenza A/B (FluA/FluB) and SARS-CoV-2 and internal control (IC). The FluA/FluB/SARS-CoV-2 multiplex LAMP assay showed 100% specificity for uninfected clinical samples and sensitivities of 90.6%, 86.89%, and 98.96% for LAMP kits against influenza A, influenza B, and SARS-CoV-2 clinical samples, respectively. Finally, the attribute agreement analysis for clinical tests indicated substantial agreement between the multiplex FluA/FluB/SARS-CoV-2/IC LAMP and commercial Allplex SARS-CoV-2/FluA/FluB/RSV assays.