Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Virus on Stainless-Steel Surfaces: AOAC Performance Tested MethodSM 022102.

Area of Science:

• Environmental microbiology
• Molecular diagnostics
• Food safety

Background:

• The SureFast SARS-CoV-2 PLUS Test is a reverse transcription qPCR (RT-qPCR) assay designed for qualitative detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA.
• This test targets RNA from stainless-steel environmental sample swabs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate the SureFast SARS-CoV-2 PLUS Kit for AOAC Research Institute's Emergency Response Validation.
• To assess the kit's performance for detecting SARS-CoV-2 on environmental surfaces.

Main Methods:

• In silico analysis of 15,764 SARS-CoV-2 sequences and 65 exclusivity organisms using ThermoBLAST for specificity.
• Evaluation in an unpaired study design on stainless steel surfaces.
• Comparison against the CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel.

Main Results:

• In silico analysis showed 99.99% selectivity for detecting SARS-CoV-2 genomes and discriminating against near neighbors.
• The candidate method demonstrated statistically significant better recovery of the target analyte compared to the reference PCR method.
• High specificity was confirmed for primer/probe binding to the E target genome region.

Conclusions:

• The SureFast SARS-CoV-2 PLUS Kit is a rapid and accurate method for detecting SARS-CoV-2 on stainless steel.
• This assay can be utilized by food producers to monitor COVID-19 on contact surfaces.
• The test method exhibits 99.99% binding specificity for the SARS-CoV-2 virus E gene target.