EuroSurveillance: Assays for laboratory confirmation of novel human coronavirus (hCoV-EMC) infections

Eurosurveillance, Volume 17, Issue 49, 06 December 2012

We present a rigorously validated and highly sensitive confirmatory real-time RT-PCR assay (1A assay) that can be used in combination with the previously reported upE assay. Two additional RT-PCR assays for sequencing are described, targeting the RdRp gene (RdRpSeq assay) and N gene (NSeq assay), where an insertion/deletion polymorphism might exist among different hCoV-EMC strains. Finally, a simplified and biologically safe protocol for detection of antibody response by immunofluorescence microscopy was developed using convalescent patient serum. 

Full Document:  http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=20334

V M Corman^1,2, M A Müller^1,2, U Costabel³, J Timm⁴, T Binger¹, B Meyer¹, P Kreher⁵, E Lattwein⁶, M Eschbach-Bludau¹, A Nitsche⁵, T Bleicker¹, O Landt⁷, B Schweiger⁵, J F Drexler¹, A D Osterhaus⁸, B L Haagmans⁸, U Dittmer⁴, F Bonin³, T Wolff⁵, C Drosten ()¹

1. Institute of Virology, University of Bonn Medical Centre, Bonn, Germany
2. These authors contributed equally to this work
3. Ruhrlandklinik, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
4. Institute of Virology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
5. Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany
6. Euroimmun AG, Lübeck, Germany
7. TibMolbiol, Berlin, Germany
8. Virosciences Laboratory, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, the Netherlands