Digital PCR for Absolute Quantification of Adenoviruses

Quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) assays often lack harmonization, leading to variability in viral load reporting. Differences in calibration materials, assay design, extraction methods, and gene targets further complicate standardization. We evaluated the Qiagen QIAcuityDx digital PCR (dPCR) platform for absolute quantification of adenoviruses and compared its performance to Bio-Rad droplet dPCR (ddPCR) and the standard-of-care quantitative real-time PCR assays. Viral loads of commercially available quality control materials, calibrators, and clinical samples were assessed, and we examined whether adenovirus genotype affects quantification precision across platforms.