Virus isolation of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) for diagnostic and research purposes

Sacha Stelzer-Braid; Gregory J Walker; Anupriya Aggarwal; Sonia R Isaacs; Malinna Yeang; Zin Naing; Alberto Ospina Stella; Stuart G Turville; William D Rawlinson

doi:10.1016/j.pathol.2020.09.012

Virus isolation of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) for diagnostic and research purposes

Pathology. 2020 Dec;52(7):760-763. doi: 10.1016/j.pathol.2020.09.012. Epub 2020 Oct 8.

Authors

Sacha Stelzer-Braid¹, Gregory J Walker², Anupriya Aggarwal³, Sonia R Isaacs², Malinna Yeang⁴, Zin Naing⁵, Alberto Ospina Stella³, Stuart G Turville³, William D Rawlinson⁶

Affiliations

¹ Virology Research Laboratory, Serology and Virology Division (SAViD), Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia. Electronic address: s.stelzer-braid@unsw.edu.au.
² Virology Research Laboratory, Serology and Virology Division (SAViD), Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
³ Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
⁴ Virology Research Laboratory, Serology and Virology Division (SAViD), Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Serology and Virology Division (SAViD), NSW Health Pathology East, Department of Microbiology, Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
⁵ Serology and Virology Division (SAViD), NSW Health Pathology East, Department of Microbiology, Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
⁶ Virology Research Laboratory, Serology and Virology Division (SAViD), Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Serology and Virology Division (SAViD), NSW Health Pathology East, Department of Microbiology, Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Abstract

Isolation of the new pandemic virus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is essential for diagnostic and research purposes including assessment of novel therapeutics. Several primary and continuous cell lines are currently used, and new organoid and engineered cell lines are being developed for improved investigation and understanding of the human immune response to this virus. Here we review the growth of SARS-CoV-2 in reference standard cell lines, engineered cell lines and new developments in this field.

Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; cell culture; respiratory virus; virus culture.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

COVID-19 / diagnosis*
COVID-19 Testing / methods*
Cell Culture Techniques
Cell Line
Humans
SARS-CoV-2 / isolation & purification*