Comparison of in-house SARS-CoV-2 genome extraction procedures. A need for COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract Purpose: Among the methods used to diagnose COVID-19, those based on genomic detection by q(RT)-PCR are the most sensitive. To perform these assays, a previous genome extraction of the sample is required. The dramatic increase in the number of SARS-CoV-2 detection assays has increased the demand for extraction reagents hindering the supply of commercial reagents. Homemade reagents and procedures could be an alternative. Methods: Nasopharyngeal samples were extracted by seven different methods as well as the automatic method MagNaPure96, to detect SARS-CoV-2. Results: All protocols show sensitivity higher than 87%, in comparison with reference method, for detecting SARS-CoV-2 as well as human β- globin. Conclusions: Our results support that these procedures, using common and cheap reagents, are effective to extract RNA (from SARS-CoV-2) or DNA (from human β-globin) genome from nasopharyngeal swabs. Furthermore, these procedures could be easily adopted by routine diagnostic laboratories to implement detection methods to help to fight against COVID-19 pandemic.