Antibody detection assays for COVID-19 diagnosis: an early overview

The ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has not only commenced a global health emergency but also agitated various aspects of humanity. During this period of crisis, researchers over the world have ramped their efforts to constrain the disease in all possible ways, whether it is vaccination, therapy or diagnosis. Because the spread of the disease has not yet elapsed, sharing the ongoing research findings could be the key to disease control and management. An early and efficient diagnosis could leverage the outcome until a successful vaccine is developed. Both in-house and commercial kits are the preferred molecular tests being used worldwide in the COVID-19 diagnosis. However, the limitation of high prices and lengthy procedures impede their use for mass testing. Keeping the constant rise of infection in mind, the search for an alternative test that is cost-effective, simple and suitable for large-scale testing and surveillance is the need of the hour. One such alternative could be immunological tests. In the last few months, a deluge of immunological rapid tests have been developed and validated across the globe. The objective of this review is to share the diagnostic performance of various immunological assays reported so far in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 case detection. We consolidate the studies (published and preprints) related to serological tests such as chemiluminescence, enzyme-linked and lateral flow-based point-of-care tests in COVID-19 diagnosis and update the current scenario. This review aims to be an add-on in COVID-19 research and will contribute to congregation of the evidence for decision making.

Automated summary

Researchers worldwide are intensifying efforts to control the spread of COVID-19, with a focus on finding alternative testing methods. The rapid development of immunological tests is proving to be effective in diagnosing viral infections, offering a potential solution to the challenges posed by high prices and lengthy procedures of current molecular tests.