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Updated: Oct 8, 2025
Author Spotlight: Advancing Pathogen Diagnostics with Standardized LAMP
Published on: September 8, 2023
RNA purification-free detection of SARS-CoV-2 using reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification
Meng Yee Lai1, Jeyanthi Suppiah2, Ravindran Thayan2
1Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University Malaya, 50603, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Background:
Current diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection relies on RNA purification prior to amplification. Typical extraction methods limit the processing speed and turnaround time for SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic testing.
Methods:
Here, we applied reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification directly onto human clinical swabs samples to amplify the RNA from SARS-CoV-2 swab samples after processing with chelating resin.
Results:
By testing our method on 64 samples, we managed to develop an RT-LAMP assay with 95.9% sensitivity (95% CI 86 to 99.5%) and 100% specificity (95% CI 78.2-100%).
Conclusion:
The entire process including sample processing can be completed in approximately 50 min. This method has promising potential to be applied as a fast, simple and inexpensive diagnostic tool for the detection of SARS-CoV-2.
