Point-of-Care Diagnostics Using Molecular Approaches

Molecular point care diagnostics aimed to provide simplified diagnostic platforms which are rapid and designed in miniaturized forms for on-field disease diagnosis. There are various approaches to develop molecular point-of-care tests (POCTs). In this chapter, we reviewed commonly used molecular POCT platforms. The selection of diagnostic module for effective POCT development usually depends on the factors such as simplicity, robustness, sensitivity, and cost of the test. Currently, isothermal amplification-based POCTs are gaining importance for their sensitive and low-cost input nature. While alternative to amplification, non-amplifying molecular POCT modules are also available. Despite the high relevance POCTs in clinical on-field diagnosis, very few molecular POCTs could be commercialized. These narrow success on-field applications could be overcome with an adaptation of appropriate quality assurance protocols. In nutshell, the molecular POCTs could be handy diagnostic support for augmenting livestock health and production provided appropriate diagnostic module with strict quality assurance criteria should be selected.