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Analysis of institutional authors

Mosquera MAuthorVila JAuthorMarcos MaAuthor

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November 17, 2021
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Viral culture confirmed SARS-CoV-2 subgenomic RNA value as a good surrogate marker of infectivity

Publicated to:Journal Of Clinical Microbiology. 60 (1): e0160921- - 2022-01-01 60(1), DOI: 10.1128/jcm.01609-21

Authors: Bravo, MS; Berengua, C; Marín, P; Esteban, M; Rodriguez, C; del Cuerpo, M; Miró, E; Cuesta, G; Mosquera, M; Sánchez-Palomino, S; Vila, J; Rabella, N; Marcos, MA

Affiliations

Hosp Clin Barcelona, Inst Global Hlth Barcelona ISGlobal, Microbiol Dept, Barcelona, Spain - Author
Univ Autonoma Barcelona, Microbiol Dept, Hosp Santa Creu & St Pau, Barcelona, Spain - Author
Univ Barcelona, Hosp Clin, Inst Invest Biomed August Pi & Sunyer IDIBAPS, AIDS Res Grp, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Abstract

Determining SARS-CoV-2 viral infectivity is crucial for patient clinical assessment and isolation decisions. We assessed subgenomic RNA (sgRNA) as a surrogate marker of SARS-CoV-2 infectivity in SARS-CoV-2-positive reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) respiratory samples (n = 105) in comparison with viral culture as the reference standard for virus replication. sgRNA and viral isolation results were concordant in 99/105 cases (94%), indicating highly significant agreement between the two techniques (Cohen's kappa coefficient 0.88, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.78 to 0.97, P < 0.001). sgRNA RT-PCR showed a sensitivity of 97% and a positive predictive value of 94% to detect replication-competent virus, further supporting sgRNA as a surrogate marker of SARS-CoV-2 infectivity. sgRNA RT-PCR is an accurate, rapid, and affordable technique that can overcome culture and cycle threshold (C-T) value limitations and be routinely implemented in hospital laboratories to detect viral infectivity, which is essential for optimizing patient monitoring, the efficacy of treatments/vaccines, and work reincorporation policies, as well as for safely shortening isolation precautions.

Keywords

covid-19infectivitysubgenomic rnaviral cultureArticleBiological markerBiomarkersBiosafetyClinical assessmentControlled studyCoronavirus disease 2019Covid-19Critical illnessDisease markerDisease severityGene amplificationGeneticsGenomic rnaHumanHumansInfectivityKappa statisticsLower respiratory tractMajor clinical studyNonhumanPatient monitoringPredictive valueReverse transcriptionReverse transcription polymerase chain reactionRnaRna extractionRna, viralSars-cov-2Sensitivity and specificitySevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2Subgenomic rnaUpper respiratory tractViral cultureVirus cultureVirus infectivityVirus isolationVirus loadVirus replicationVirus rnaVirus transmission

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Journal Of Clinical Microbiology due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2022, it was in position 17/135, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Microbiology.

From a relative perspective, and based on the normalized impact indicator calculated from World Citations provided by WoS (ESI, Clarivate), it yields a value for the citation normalization relative to the expected citation rate of: 3.25. This indicates that, compared to works in the same discipline and in the same year of publication, it ranks as a work cited above average. (source consulted: ESI Nov 14, 2024)

This information is reinforced by other indicators of the same type, which, although dynamic over time and dependent on the set of average global citations at the time of their calculation, consistently position the work at some point among the top 50% most cited in its field:

  • Weighted Average of Normalized Impact by the Scopus agency: 3.21 (source consulted: FECYT Feb 2024)
  • Field Citation Ratio (FCR) from Dimensions: 8.89 (source consulted: Dimensions Jul 2025)

Specifically, and according to different indexing agencies, this work has accumulated citations as of 2025-07-04, the following number of citations:

  • WoS: 32
  • Scopus: 34
  • Europe PMC: 18

Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-07-04:

  • The use, from an academic perspective evidenced by the Altmetric agency indicator referring to aggregations made by the personal bibliographic manager Mendeley, gives us a total of: 31.
  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 31 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

  • The Total Score from Altmetric: 5.
  • The number of mentions on the social network X (formerly Twitter): 8 (Altmetric).

It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

  • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.

Leadership analysis of institutional authors

There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (Bravo MS) and Last Author (Marcos Maeso, Mª Angeles).