Assessment of Nine Real-Time PCR Kits for African Swine Fever Virus Approved in Republic of Korea

The African swine fever virus (ASFV) causes severe disease in wild and domestic pigs, with high mortality rates, extensive spread, and significant economic losses globally. Despite ongoing efforts, an effective vaccine remains elusive. Therefore, effective diagnostic methods are needed to rapidly detect and prevent the further spread of ASF. This study assessed nine commercial kits based on real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) approved in the Republic of Korea using the synthesized ASFV plasmid, 20 food waste samples, and artificially spiked samples (ASSs). The kits were evaluated for their diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, cost per reaction, and reaction running time. In addition, the results were compared with those of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) standard methods. Three commercial kits (VDx^® ASFV qPCR Kit, Palm PCR™ ASFV Fast PCR Kit, and PowerChek™ ASFV Real-time PCR Detection Kit Ver.1.0) demonstrated the highest sensitivity (100 ag/microL), cost-effectiveness (less than KRW 10,000), and shortest running time (less than 70 min). These kits are suitable for the monitoring, early diagnosis, and prevention of the spread of ASF. This is the first report on the performance comparison of ASFV diagnostic kits approved in the Republic of Korea, providing valuable information for selecting kits for testing with food waste samples.