20 January 2022 [Press release]

Demonstrated accuracy of GenoScreen™ SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR Assay for Omicron variant detection

As reported in our Application Notes #92007004, genomic or synthetic RNA from four VoCs was used to test the compatibility of GenoScreen^TM SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR Assay towards SARS-CoV-2 variant detection. 1x10⁴ copies RNA input was used and 6 replicates were performed in each experiment. The RT-qPCR assay was able to detect all 4 types of variants (including the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta variants). 100% detection status was attained among the 6 replicates. 

To further evaluate the detection efficiency against the Omicron variant, serial dilution of 1x10⁵ copies down to 10 copies Omicron variant RNA input were tested. The RT-qPCR assay was able to detect all of the tested dilutions, therefore the detection sensitivity of the GenoScreen^TM SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR Assay is not impacted by the Omicron variant.