COVID-19 DIAGNOSTICS: CURRENT STATE OF THE PROBLEM AND PROSPECTS IN THE BRANCH
SARS-CoV-2 is a new representative of the world of virology related to coronaviruses and can cause a wide range of diseases of the respiratory system: from colds to acute respiratory distress-syndrome with severe respiratory failure. The pathogenesis of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) is associated with the ability of SARS-CoV-2 to bind to ACE receptors and subsequently activate IL-6, the main stimulator of the “cytokine storm”. Due to such features of the viral pathogenesis, early and accurate detection of active forms, as well as virus carriage are needed. In review, the whole spectrum of the main diagnostic methods is represented, with a comparison of the effectiveness and conditional indication of COVID-19: from the currently used methods (RT-PCR, ELISA) to potentially possible (OT-LAMP, CRISPR), as well as those still under development (chemiluminescence).