The aim of this study is to confirm or rule out the residual presence and viability of SARS- CoV-2 in the respiratory tract and lung parenchyma of patients previously infected with SARS-CoV-2.
Presence and viability of SARS-CoV-2 in lung tissue will be assessed with reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and viral culture. The histological location of residual SARS-CoV-2 will be determined with fluorescence immunohistochemistry and single molecule fluorescence in situ hybridization, targeting viral proteins and RNA respectively.
Patient requires medically indicated pulmonary resection
Informed consent
Active SARS-CoV-2 infection/COVID-19
No informed consent
Patients requiring a medically indicated pulmonary resection.
Cohort
Prospective
Lung biopsy
Diagnostic testBiopsy of residuary material from a medically indicated pulmonary resection
Reverse transcriptase-PCR
Detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in lung tissue homogenate with primers targeting both genomic and subgenomic RNA
Fluorescence immunohistochemistry (IHC)
Determining the histological presence of SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins in lung tissue with commercially available antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 spike and nucleocapsid proteins
Single molecule fluorescence in situ hybridization (smFISH)
Determining the presence of SARS-COV-2 viral RNA in lung tissue with commercially available probes targeting both sense and anti-sense viral RNA
Viral culture
Determining viability of SARS-CoV-2 in case of a low revere transcriptase-PCR cycling threshold
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