Introduction:

Coronaviruses cause respiratory, hepatic or neurological diseases, with variable severity in their host. Real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction is the reference methodology to confirm the detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. A bibliographic review was carried out in the period from July to November 2021, in the resources available in MEDLINE, SciELO, Pubmed and Elsevier. Of the total queries, 35 references were cited.

Objective:

Describe molecular tests for the detection of SARS-CoV-2.

Development:

Three types of rRT-PCR assays have been designed for the detection of SARS-CoV-2. The tests described are specific for RNA polymerase dependent RNA (RdRp) genes, E (upE) genes, and Nnes (N) genes. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed rRT-PCR directed at the N protein of the nucleocapsid of the SARS-CoV-2 genetic material, the gene E assays (upE) and protein gene 1b (ORF 1b) can be complemented for detection and confirmation.

Conclusions:

The targets used for the specific detection of the SARS-CoV-2 genome by real-time RT-PCR are found in the ORF1a and 1b, RdRp, N, S and E regions of the viral RNA.

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