Recombinase polymerase amplification assay for rapid detection of Rift Valley fever virus

The one-step-RT-RPA assay showed a sensitivity of 19 molecules detected as determined by probit analysis of eight runs using a RVFV S-segment based quantitative RNA standard and detected 20 different RVFV strains. The assays showed no cross detection of the human genome and several agents of a typical biothreat panel. It performed almost as good as the assay using glycerol buffer based Transcriptor albeit at a cost of 1-log10 step in sensitivity. The presented combination of one-step-RT-RPA and portable fluorescence reading device could be a useful tool for field or point of care diagnostics.