New diagnostics

Principal Investigator(s)
Ian Lipkin, John Snow Professor of Epidemiology and Professor of Neurology and Pathology and Cell Biology; Director, Center for Infection and Immunity

Description: Dr. Ian Lipkin, director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia's Mailman School of Public Health, is developing a simultaneous and differential diagnosis of SARS‐CoV‐2, influenza A and influenza B virus with appropriate reaction control using two assays that could be implemented as multiplex PCR assays. The first utilizes several sets of primers to simultaneously detect SARS-CoV-2, influenza A virus, influenza B virus, and a control gene. The second uses several other sets of primers to target three genes in SARS-CoV-2 and a control. This technology may be useful for the differential diagnosis of infections causing symptoms resembling that of SARS-CoV-2. Given the limited testing capabilities in the US and the similar symptomology among viruses causing respiratory illness, it is important to be able to identify those that have already been exposed to the virus. To meet this need, Dr. Lipkin’s group is also working on a serological approach to identify a series of epitopes along the COVID-19 proteome that could be used to differentially diagnosis historical infection. They have also identified a series of COVID-19 reactive peptides that be used as epitope targets for vaccine development.

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