The application of an in-house real-time RT-PCR assay as a screening tool for COVID-19 cases during the first wave of the pandemic in Malaysia

Abstract

In December 2019, a global alert was warranted on the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, a novel coronavirus in China. The full genome of the virus was released within a few days. As part of the preparedness in facing the possibility of regional spread of the virus, we set up an in-house Real-Time RT-PCR assay for an early screening of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). The single target assay was useful in detecting COVID-19 from the early batches of suspected cases that were sent to our laboratory. The assay had successfully detected the first three COVID-19 contact cases in Malaysia which could have been missed due to the unavailability of a standard detection method at that time.