|
1
|
Pfau B, Opsahl J, Crew R, Best S, Han PD, Heidl S, McDermot E, Stone J, Schwabe-Fry K, MacMillan MP, O'Hanlon J, Sohlberg S, Acker Z, Ehmen B, Englund JA, Konnick EQ, Chu HY, Weil AA, Lockwood CM, Starita LM. Tiny swabs: nasal swabs integrated into tube caps facilitate large-scale self-collected SARS-CoV-2 testing. J Clin Microbiol 2024; 62:e0128523. [PMID: 38131692 PMCID: PMC10865831 DOI: 10.1128/jcm.01285-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic spurred the development of innovative solutions for specimen collection and molecular detection for large-scale community testing. Among these developments is the RHINOstic nasal swab, a plastic anterior nares swab built into the cap of a standard matrix tube that facilitates automated processing of up to 96 specimens at a time. In a study of unsupervised self-collection utilizing these swabs, we demonstrate comparable analytic performance and shipping stability compared to traditional anterior nares swabs, as well as significant improvements in laboratory processing efficiency. The use of these swabs may allow laboratories to accommodate large numbers of sample collections during periods of high testing demand. Automation-friendly nasal swabs are an important tool for high-throughput processing of samples that may be adopted in response to future respiratory viral pandemics.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Brian Pfau
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jordan Opsahl
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Ruben Crew
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Sabrina Best
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Peter D. Han
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Sarah Heidl
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Evan McDermot
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jeremy Stone
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | | | | | - Jessica O'Hanlon
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Sarah Sohlberg
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Zack Acker
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Brenna Ehmen
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Janet A. Englund
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Eric Q. Konnick
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Helen Y. Chu
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Center for Emerging and Re-Emerging Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Ana A. Weil
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Center for Emerging and Re-Emerging Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Christina M. Lockwood
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Lea M. Starita
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - The Seattle Flu Alliance InvestigatorsBedfordTrevorBoeckhMichaelChuHelen Y.EnglundJanet A.LockwoodChristina M.LutzBarry R.PrenticeRobinShendureJayStaritaLea M.WaghmereAlpanaWeilAna A.
- Brotman Baty Institute for Precision Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Center for Emerging and Re-Emerging Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| |
Collapse
|