Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
Tuberculosis (Edinb). 2019 Jul;117:85-92. doi: 10.1016/j.tube.2019.07.001. Epub 2019 Jul 3.
Droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) is a third generation of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) that enables the exact quantification of nucleic acid targets within a sample. The capability of ddPCR to accurately detect and quantify low abundant targets has led to its fast-growing applications in detection of different pathogens. This review summarizes the ddPCR technology and its applications in tuberculosis diagnosis. From current studies including a total of 9 publications on the applications of ddPCR in tuberculosis research, it is clear that ddPCR technology offers enormous advantages, such as unparalleled sensitivity, high precision, and absolute quantification without a standard curve, over common molecular diagnostic platforms like the real-time quantification PCR. The latest study also showed that rapid drug susceptibility test of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in sputa could be achieved within 4 days. However, the high cost is the main limitation for its wide applications, especially in developing countries. As we near the vision 2030 goal for sustainable development and ending the tuberculosis epidemic by 2030, ddPCR techniques may help achieve this objective and many more discussed in the UNGA-HLM-TB.
微滴式数字聚合酶链式反应（ddPCR）是第三代聚合酶链式反应（PCR），可实现样本中核酸靶标的精确定量。ddPCR 能够准确检测和定量低丰度靶标，这使得它在检测不同病原体方面的应用迅速增长。本综述总结了 ddPCR 技术及其在结核病诊断中的应用。从目前总共 9 篇关于 ddPCR 在结核病研究中的应用的研究来看，ddPCR 技术具有无与伦比的灵敏度、高精度和无需标准曲线的绝对定量等优势，明显优于实时定量 PCR 等常见分子诊断平台。最新研究还表明，ddPCR 可在 4 天内快速检测痰液中的结核分枝杆菌药敏情况。然而，高成本是其广泛应用的主要限制，尤其是在发展中国家。随着我们接近 2030 年可持续发展目标和到 2030 年终结结核病流行的愿景，ddPCR 技术可能有助于实现这一目标以及联合国大会高级别会议结核病问题会议上讨论的许多其他目标。
