Viruses (Dec 2020)
Comparison of Rapid Antigen Tests for COVID-19
- Seiya Yamayoshi,
- Yuko Sakai-Tagawa,
- Michiko Koga,
- Osamu Akasaka,
- Ichiro Nakachi,
- Hidefumi Koh,
- Kenji Maeda,
- Eisuke Adachi,
- Makoto Saito,
- Hiroyuki Nagai,
- Kazuhiko Ikeuchi,
- Takayuki Ogura,
- Rie Baba,
- Kensuke Fujita,
- Takahiro Fukui,
- Fumimaro Ito,
- Shin-ichiro Hattori,
- Kei Yamamoto,
- Takato Nakamoto,
- Yuri Furusawa,
- Atsuhiro Yasuhara,
- Michiko Ujie,
- Shinya Yamada,
- Mutsumi Ito,
- Hiroaki Mitsuya,
- Norio Omagari,
- Hiroshi Yotsuyanagi,
- Kiyoko Iwatsuki-Horimoto,
- Masaki Imai,
- Yoshihiro Kawaoka
Affiliations
- Seiya Yamayoshi
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Yuko Sakai-Tagawa
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Michiko Koga
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Advanced Clinical Research Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Osamu Akasaka
- Emergency Medical Center, Fujisawa City Hospital, Kanagawa 251-8550, Japan
- Ichiro Nakachi
- Pulmonary Division, Department of Internal Medicine, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Tochigi 321-0974, Japan
- Hidefumi Koh
- Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Tachikawa Hospital, Tokyo 190-8531, Japan
- Kenji Maeda
- Department of Refractory Viral Infections, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Research Institute, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
- Eisuke Adachi
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Applied Immunology, IMSUT Hospital of Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Makoto Saito
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Advanced Clinical Research Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Hiroyuki Nagai
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Applied Immunology, IMSUT Hospital of Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Kazuhiko Ikeuchi
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Advanced Clinical Research Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Takayuki Ogura
- Department of Emergency Medicine and Critical Care Medicine, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Tochigi 321-0974, Japan
- Rie Baba
- Pulmonary Division, Department of Internal Medicine, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Tochigi 321-0974, Japan
- Kensuke Fujita
- Department of Emergency Medicine and Critical Care Medicine, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Tochigi 321-0974, Japan
- Takahiro Fukui
- Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Tachikawa Hospital, Tokyo 190-8531, Japan
- Fumimaro Ito
- Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Tachikawa Hospital, Tokyo 190-8531, Japan
- Shin-ichiro Hattori
- Department of Refractory Viral Infections, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Research Institute, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
- Kei Yamamoto
- Disease Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Hospital, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
- Takato Nakamoto
- Disease Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Hospital, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
- Yuri Furusawa
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Atsuhiro Yasuhara
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Michiko Ujie
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Shinya Yamada
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Mutsumi Ito
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Hiroaki Mitsuya
- Department of Refractory Viral Infections, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Research Institute, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
- Norio Omagari
- Disease Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Hospital, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
- Hiroshi Yotsuyanagi
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Advanced Clinical Research Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Kiyoko Iwatsuki-Horimoto
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Masaki Imai
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Yoshihiro Kawaoka
- Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/v12121420
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 12,
no. 12
p. 1420
Abstract
Reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR)-based tests are widely used to diagnose coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). As a result that these tests cannot be done in local clinics where RT-qPCR testing capability is lacking, rapid antigen tests (RATs) for COVID-19 based on lateral flow immunoassays are used for rapid diagnosis. However, their sensitivity compared with each other and with RT-qPCR and infectious virus isolation has not been examined. Here, we compared the sensitivity among four RATs by using severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) isolates and several types of COVID-19 patient specimens and compared their sensitivity with that of RT-qPCR and infectious virus isolation. Although the RATs read the samples containing large amounts of virus as positive, even the most sensitive RAT read the samples containing small amounts of virus as negative. Moreover, all RATs tested failed to detect viral antigens in several specimens from which the virus was isolated. The current RATs will likely miss some COVID-19 patients who are shedding infectious SARS-CoV-2.
Keywords
