Laboratory of Virology and Experimental Therapy, Department of Virology, Aggeu Magalhães Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.
Laboratory of Experimental Immunology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
Braz J Microbiol. 2024 Sep;55(3):2797-2803. doi: 10.1007/s42770-024-01446-3. Epub 2024 Jul 23.
Numerous commercial tests for the serological diagnosis of COVID-19 have been produced in recent years. However, it is important to note that these tests exhibit significant variability in their sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of results. Therefore, the objective of this study was to utilize bioinformatics tools to map SARS-CoV-2 peptides, with the goal of developing a new serological diagnostic test for COVID-19. Two peptides from the S protein and one from the N protein were selected and characterized in silico, chemically synthesized, and used as a serological diagnostic tool to detect IgM, IgG, and IgA anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies through the ELISA technique, confirmed as positive and negative samples by RT-qPCR or serology by ELISA. The results showed a sensitivity, specificity, Positive Predictive Value and Negative Predictive Value of 100% (p < 00001, 95% CI) for the proposed test. Although preliminary, this study brings proof-of-concept results that are consistent with the high-performance rates of the ELISA test when compared to other well-established methods for diagnosing COVID-19.
近年来，已经有许多用于 COVID-19 血清学诊断的商业检测方法问世。然而，需要注意的是，这些检测方法在灵敏度、特异性和结果准确性方面存在显著差异。因此，本研究的目的是利用生物信息学工具对 SARS-CoV-2 肽进行映射，以期开发一种新的 COVID-19 血清学诊断检测方法。选择来自 S 蛋白的两个肽和一个来自 N 蛋白的肽进行计算机分析、化学合成，并通过 ELISA 技术用作血清学诊断工具，通过 RT-qPCR 或 ELISA 血清学确认为阳性和阴性样本。结果显示，该检测方法的灵敏度、特异性、阳性预测值和阴性预测值均为 100%（p < 00001，95%CI）。虽然这只是初步研究，但与其他用于诊断 COVID-19 的成熟方法相比，该 ELISA 检测方法的性能较高，本研究结果提供了与该方法性能一致的概念验证结果。
