Accurate determination of hepatitis C virus RNA level is essential for evaluating the response to antiviral therapy, to determine the duration of treatment, and to predict treatment outcome. Currently, two real-time based polymerase chain reaction assays are used widely to monitor the hepatitis C RNA level: the Abbott RealTime HCV assay and the Cobas Taqman HCV assay. Recently, a third assay has become commercially available: the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay, which uses the QIAsymphony SP/AS platform for sample preparation and PCR-setup, and the Rotor-Gene Q for amplification and detection. In this study, the performance of the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay was tested on 105 plasma samples and compared to that of the Cobas Taqman HCV assay. Linear regression analysis showed a good agreement between the two assays. A slightly better sensitivity was observed with the Cobas Taqman assay, while higher hepatitis C viral RNA levels were measured by the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay in samples positive for hepatitis C genotypes 4. Taken together, the data suggest that the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay is useful in a diagnostic setting. The combination with the versatile QIAsymphony SP/AS system may represent a major advantage for clinical virological laboratories aiming at optimizing their workflow.
Paba, P., Fabeni, L., Perno, C.f., Ciotti, M. (2011). Performance evaluation of the Artus hepatitis C virus QS-RGQ assay. JOURNAL OF VIROLOGICAL METHODS [10.1016/j.jviromet.2011.09.024].
Performance evaluation of the Artus hepatitis C virus QS-RGQ assay
PERNO, CARLO FEDERICO;
2011-10-05
Abstract
Accurate determination of hepatitis C virus RNA level is essential for evaluating the response to antiviral therapy, to determine the duration of treatment, and to predict treatment outcome. Currently, two real-time based polymerase chain reaction assays are used widely to monitor the hepatitis C RNA level: the Abbott RealTime HCV assay and the Cobas Taqman HCV assay. Recently, a third assay has become commercially available: the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay, which uses the QIAsymphony SP/AS platform for sample preparation and PCR-setup, and the Rotor-Gene Q for amplification and detection. In this study, the performance of the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay was tested on 105 plasma samples and compared to that of the Cobas Taqman HCV assay. Linear regression analysis showed a good agreement between the two assays. A slightly better sensitivity was observed with the Cobas Taqman assay, while higher hepatitis C viral RNA levels were measured by the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay in samples positive for hepatitis C genotypes 4. Taken together, the data suggest that the Artus HCV QS-RGQ assay is useful in a diagnostic setting. The combination with the versatile QIAsymphony SP/AS system may represent a major advantage for clinical virological laboratories aiming at optimizing their workflow.Questo articolo è pubblicato sotto una Licenza Licenza Creative Commons