QIAseq DIRECT SARS-CoV-2 Kit G

The DIRECT SARS-CoV-2 Kit G from QIAGEN is a targeted, rapid viral RNA library preparation kit designed for use on Illumina sequencers, with an approximately five-hour turn-around time from viral RNA sample to sequencing. It supports conversion of RNA extracts into sequencing libraries from clinical and environmental samples, with reagents provided for cDNA synthesis, SARS-CoV-2 enrichment, and library amplification and indexing.

The workflow uses two primer pools that produce overlapping amplicons of approximately 250 bp in size, removing the need for fragmentation prior to sequencing on Illumina platforms. Viral RNA input is 5 μl regardless of viral load, and the enhanced protocol eliminates the need for normalization and quantification before amplification and indexing. The kit provides 10 bp unique dual indexes (UDIs), and at a cycle read length of 149 for each paired-end read, the total sequencing time is just over 28 hours.

The kit is supplied with RP Primer, EZ Reverse Transcriptase, RNase Inhibitor, Multimodal RT Buffer, DIRECT SARS-CoV-2 Pool 1, DIRECT SARS-CoV-2 Pool 2, QIAseq DIRECT UDI Set, Nuclease-Free Water, and QIAseq Beads. It is intended to be used together with the QIAseq DIRECT SARS-CoV-2 Enhancer for the enhanced workflow. The kit is compatible with downstream next-generation sequencing and bioinformatic analysis pipelines.