Persistent Nonviral Plasmid Vector in Nasal Tissues Causes False-Positive SARS-CoV-2 Diagnostic Nucleic Acid Tests

作者：Ingrid A. Beck, Sheila Styrchak, Leslie R. Miller, Fred D. Mast, Vladimir Vigdorovich, Winnie Yeung, Daisy Ko, Alyssa Oldroyd, Samantha Hardy, Song Li, J. C. Houck, Yonghou Jiang, Nicholas Dambrauskas, Catherine Darcey, Andrew Raappana, William Selman, D. Noah Sather, John D. Aitchison, Whitney E. Harrington, Lisa M. Frenkel · 发表于：Microbiology Spectrum · 年份：2022 · DOI：10.1128/spectrum.01695-22 · 被引用次数：2 · 研究领域：SARS-CoV-2 detection and testing、Advanced biosensing and bioanalysis techniques、Biosensors and Analytical Detection

Asymptomatic laboratory workers who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 for days to months were found to harbor a laboratory plasmid vector containing SARS-CoV-2 DNA, which they had worked with in the past, in their nasal secretions. While prior studies have documented contamination of research personnel with PCR amplicons, our observation is novel, as these individuals shed the laboratory plasmid over days to months, including during isolation in their homes. This suggests that the plasmid was in their nasal tissues or that bacteria containing the plasmid had colonized their noses. While plasmids are generally safe, our detection of plasmid DNA in the nasal secretions of laboratory workers for weeks after they had stopped working with the plasmid shows the potential for these reagents to interfere with clinical tests and emphasizes that occupational exposures in the preceding months should be considered when interpreting diagnostic clinical tests.