CRISPR-based assays for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2

COVID-19 pandemic posed an unprecedented threat to global public health and economies. There is no effective treatment of the disease, hence, scaling up testing for rapid diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients and quarantine them from healthy individuals is one the best strategies to curb the pandemic. Establishing globally accepted easy-to-access diagnostic tests is extremely important to understanding the epidemiology of the present pandemic. While nucleic acid based tests are considered to be more sensitive with respect to serological tests but present gold standard qRT-PCR-based assays possess limitations such as low sample throughput, requirement for sophisticated reagents and instrumentation. To overcome these shortcomings, recent efforts of incorporating LAMP-based isothermal detection, and minimizing the number of reagents required are on rise. CRISPR based novel techniques, when merge with isothermal and allied technologies, promises to provide sensitive and rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acids. Here, we discuss and present compilation of state-of-the-art detection techniques for COVID-19 using CRISPR technology which has tremendous potential to transform diagnostics and epidemiology.

Automated summary

The COVID-19 pandemic has posed an unprecedented threat to global public health and economies. Scaling up testing for rapid diagnosis of infected patients and quarantine measures are crucial strategies to curb the spread of the virus. Establishing globally accessible diagnostic tests is important for understanding the epidemiology. Recent efforts have focused on utilizing LAMP-based isothermal detection and minimizing reagent requirements to overcome limitations of current tests. Incorporating CRISPR technology with isothermal amplification shows promise for sensitive and rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acids, potentially transforming diagnostics and epidemiology.