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

Jeyanthi Suppiah*, Tengku Rogayah TAR, Mohamad Helmi Jalaludin, Zarina Mohd Zawawi, Muhammad Afif Azizan, Rozainanee Mohd Zain, Ravindran Thaya

Virology Unit, Infectious Disease Research Centre, Institute for Medical Research, National Institutes of Health, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Jalan Setia Murni U13/52, Seksyen U13 Setia Alam, 40170 Shah Alam, Selangor.

*Corresponding author: Jeyanthi Suppiah, Virology Unit, Infectious Disease Research Centre, Institute for Medical Research, National Institutes of Health, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Jalan Setia Murni U13/52, Seksyen U13 Setia Alam, 40170 Shah Alam, Selangor. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

CITATION: Suppiah J, TAR TR, Jalaludin MH, Mohd Zawawi Z, Azizan MA, Mohd Zain R, et al. 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. International Medical Research Journal. 2023 Jun;9(1):70–3.

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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.

KEYWORDS: COVID-19, Real-Time RT-PCR, First wave