SARS-CoV-2 samples may escape detection because of a single point mutation in the N gene
Katharina Ziegler, Philipp Steininger, Renate Ziegler, Jörg Steinmann, Klaus Korn, Armin Ensser
Abstract
We found that a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the nucleoprotein gene of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from a patient interfered with detection in a widely used commercial assay. Some 0.2% of the isolates in the EpiCoV database contain this SNP. Although SARS-CoV-2 was still detected by the other probe in the assay, this underlines the necessity of targeting two independent essential regions of a pathogen for reliable detection.
Topics & Concepts
SNPNucleoproteinPoint mutationSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)Single-nucleotide polymorphismGeneBiologyMutationGeneticsVirologyCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)2019-20 coronavirus outbreakCoronavirusMedicineGenotypeInfectious disease (medical specialty)OutbreakDiseasePathologySARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 ResearchSARS-CoV-2 detection and testingViral gastroenteritis research and epidemiology