Published Date: 2012-09-29 17:41:32
Subject: PRO/EDR> Novel coronavirus - Saudi Arabia (09): real-time RT-PCR, addition
Archive Number: 20120929.1315725

NOVEL CORONAVIRUS - SAUDI ARABIA (09): REAL-TIME POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION, ADDITION
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Date: Sat 29 Sep 2012
From: Prof Christian Drosten, MD
<drosten@virology-bonn.de>


Re: Novel coronavirus - Saudi Arabia (08): real-time RT-PCR assay 20120928.1314254
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I would like to draw attention to one important omission in your condensation of the content of the article in Eurosurveillance titled: Detection of a novel human coronavirus by real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction [Eurosurveillance Edition 2012, 17(39)
http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=20285].

The following passage at the very end of the results section was omitted and, critically, not considered in the comment by the moderator(s). It could have been mistaken as a part of the figure legend at this place in the online article.

***This omitted passage is VERY important for the validity of the assay: "Preliminary testing was also done on a patient hospitalised with acute infection during preparation of this report (Authors R Gopal and M Zambon, own unpublished observations). Both assays provided very clear amplification signal on various clinical samples. The upE assay again appeared more sensitive than the ORF1b assay."

This means, the assays HAVE BEEN TESTED ON THE LONDON PATIENT. The comment line suggests the assay has just been validated on theoretical grounds and on the cell culture isolate. This is not the case, and I would not have presented to the public an assay that has not been validated on proper clinical material.

--
Prof Christian Drosten, MD
Director
Institute of Virology
University of Bonn Medical Centre
Sigmund Freud Str 25
53105 Bonn
Germany

[ProMED-mail and the moderators apologise unreservedly for this unintentional misrepresentation of the validity of the assay, as a consequence of condensation of the text of the article. - Mod.CP/MPP

A HealthMap/ProMED-mail map can be accessed at: http://healthmap.org/r/1HAJ.]

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