Evaluation of a Lateral Flow Immunoassay COVIDTECH® SARS-CoV-2 IgM/IgG Antibody Rapid Test

Abstract

The new coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for severe respiratory illness (i.e., COVID-19). RT-PCR of respiratory samples is the gold standard for COVID-19 diagnosis, and serological tests may contribute to the detection of post-infection and post-vaccination immunity and enable seroprevalence studies. The lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) COVIDTECH® SARS-CoV-2 IgM/IgG antibody rapid test that detects anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgM and IgG using an S protein recombinant antigen has been independently evaluated in two laboratories. The specificity evaluated for 65 pre-pandemic samples was 100% for IgM/IgG. An analysis of samples from patients with RT-PCR-confirmed infection revealed that IgM/IgG antibodies were detected in 18/26 (69%) samples before day 13 and in 58/58 (100%) samples from day 14 post-symptom onset. Before day 14 post-symptom onset, the COVIDTECH Test was less sensitive than other LFIA method (BIOSYNEX COVID-19 BSS IgM/IgG) and a chemiluminescent immunoassay (LIAISON® SARS-CoV-2 TrimericS IgG assay). Overall, this LFIA method is suitable for SARS-CoV-2 serological diagnosis for patients after > 14 days since the onset of symptoms.