ArticlePLoS neglected tropical diseases2024
Development of a non-infectious control for viral hemorrhagic fever PCR assays.
Article in PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.
- Development, Characterization, and Validation of an MS2 Phage-Based Armored RNA Control for Schmallenberg Virus Detection.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Correction: Development of a non-infectious control for viral hemorrhagic fever PCR assays.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Developing digital learning to help reduce laboratory inequalities: a viral haemorrhagic fever case study.One health outlook · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Assay validation is an essential component of disease surveillance testing, but can be problematic in settings where access to positive control material is limited and a safety risk for handlers. Here we describe a single non-infectious synthetic control that can help develop and validate the PCR based detection of the viral causes of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, Ebola virus disease, Lassa fever, Marburg virus disease and Rift Valley fever. We designed non-infectious synthetic DNA oligonucleotide sequences incorporating primer binding sites suitable for five assays, and a T7 promotor site which was used to transcribe the sequence. Transcribed RNA was used as template in a dilution series, extracted and amplified with RT-PCR and RT-qPCR to demonstrate successful recovery and determine limits of detection in a range of laboratory settings. Our results show this approach is adaptable to any diagnostic assay requiring validation of nucleic acid extraction and/or amplification, particularly where sourcing reliable, safe material for positive controls is infeasible.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.