Preprint: Rapid design of a bait capture platform for culture- and amplification-free next-generation sequencing of SARS-CoV-2

Nasir, J.A., D.J. Speicher, R.A. Kozak, H.N. Poinar, M.S. Miller, & A.G. McArthur.

Preprints 2020, 2020020385.

SARS-CoV-2 is a novel betacoronavirus and the aetiological agent of the current COVID-19 outbreak that originated in Hubei Province, China. While polymerase chain reaction is the front-line tool for SARS-CoV-2 surveillance, application of amplification-free and culture-free methods for isolation of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, partnered with next-generation sequencing, would provide a useful tool for both surveillance and research of SARS-CoV-2. We here release into the public domain a set of bait capture hybridization probe sequences for enrichment of SARS-CoV-2 RNA from complex biological samples. These probe sequences have been designed using rigorous bioinformatics methods to provide sensitivity, accuracy, and minimal off-target hybridization. Probe design was based on existing, validated approaches for detecting antimicrobial resistance genes in complex samples and it is our hope that this SARS-CoV-2 bait capture platform, once validated by those with samples in hand, will be of aid in combating the current outbreak.

Data, Software, and Sequences: https://github.com/jaleezyy/covid-19-baits

Full Story at Brighter World: McMaster develops tool for coronavirus battle

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