IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v12y2021i1d10.1038_s41467-021-25576-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Standardized preservation, extraction and quantification techniques for detection of fecal SARS-CoV-2 RNA

Author

Listed:
  • Aravind Natarajan

    (Stanford University
    Stanford University)

  • Alvin Han

    (Stanford University)

  • Soumaya Zlitni

    (Stanford University
    Stanford University)

  • Erin F. Brooks

    (Stanford University)

  • Summer E. Vance

    (Stanford University)

  • Marlene Wolfe

    (Stanford University)

  • Upinder Singh

    (Stanford University)

  • Prasanna Jagannathan

    (Stanford University
    Stanford University)

  • Benjamin A. Pinsky

    (Stanford University
    Stanford University)

  • Alexandria Boehm

    (Stanford University)

  • Ami S. Bhatt

    (Stanford University
    Stanford University)

Abstract

Patients with COVID-19 shed SARS-CoV-2 RNA in stool, sometimes well after their respiratory infection has cleared. This may be significant for patient health, epidemiology, and diagnosis. However, methods to preserve stool, and to extract and quantify viral RNA are not standardized. We test the performance of three preservative approaches at yielding detectable SARS-CoV-2 RNA: the OMNIgene-GUT kit, Zymo DNA/RNA shield kit, and the most commonly applied, storage without preservative. We test these in combination with three extraction kits: QIAamp Viral RNA Mini Kit, Zymo Quick-RNA Viral Kit, and MagMAX Viral/Pathogen Kit. We also test the utility of ddPCR and RT-qPCR for the reliable quantification of SARS-CoV-2 RNA from stool. We identify that the Zymo DNA/RNA preservative and the QiaAMP extraction kit yield more detectable RNA than the others, using both ddPCR and RT-qPCR. Taken together, we recommend a comprehensive methodology for preservation, extraction and detection of RNA from SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses in stool.

Suggested Citation

  • Aravind Natarajan & Alvin Han & Soumaya Zlitni & Erin F. Brooks & Summer E. Vance & Marlene Wolfe & Upinder Singh & Prasanna Jagannathan & Benjamin A. Pinsky & Alexandria Boehm & Ami S. Bhatt, 2021. "Standardized preservation, extraction and quantification techniques for detection of fecal SARS-CoV-2 RNA," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-12, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-25576-6
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-25576-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-25576-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-021-25576-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-25576-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.