A Mass Spectrometry-Based Targeted Assay for Detection of SARS-Cov-2 Antigen from Clinical Specimens

Renuse, S.; Vanderboom, P.M.; Maus, A.D.; et al.

The SARS-CoV2 virus, and its variants, continues to stress the health care industry and cause morbidities/mortalities worldwide. While molecular diagnosis through PCR-based analysis is the leading laboratory technique, its demand can produce material shortages, while the tests can yield false negatives. To help supplement current practices, Pandey and colleagues developed an alternative analytical approach involving immunoaffinity enrichment and targeted MS proteomics on clinical nasopharyngeal swab samples. This was validated through performance metric testing utilizing appropriate standards and controls (synthetically labeled tryptic peptides). Their final method is highly sensitive and specific, offering potential for use as a diagnostic in clinical test facilities.