COVID-19 serological survey using micro blood sampling.

Area of Science:

• * Infectious Diseases
• * Immunology
• * Public Health

Background:

• * Accurate serological surveys are crucial for understanding the spread of infectious diseases like COVID-19.
• * Traditional blood collection methods can be invasive and logistically challenging for large-scale testing.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To evaluate a novel, low-cost, at-home capillary blood collection method for SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing.
• * To assess the feasibility of a centralized enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for community seroprevalence studies.
• * To investigate the persistence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and potential cross-reactivity with MERS antibodies.

Main Methods:

• * A serological survey was conducted among students and employees at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST).
• * Participants used custom, low-cost finger-prick capillary blood collection kits for at-home self-collection.
• * Samples were analyzed using a FDA-authorized 2-step ELISA protocol, with automated liquid handling for scalability.

Main Results:

• * No COVID-19 seropositive individuals were detected in the OIST cohort.
• * The method accurately identified positive and negative control samples.
• * High antibody titers persisted for over 9 months post-infection, and MERS patient samples showed cross-reactivity.

Conclusions:

• * Centralized ELISA combined with patient-based capillary blood collection offers a reliable method for assessing community seroprevalence.
• * The developed workflow is scalable, cost-effective, and suitable for large-scale serological testing.
• * This approach can serve as a prototype for future public health surveillance of infectious diseases.