2.5. Capture Efficiency
The capture efficiency (Ec) was used to evaluate whether there is
nucleic acid loss during the capture process by comparing the Ct shift
between MADCAT and standard real-time PCR method using plasmid DNA. The
two methods shared the same PCR composition and condition, except that
the MADCAT method has additional capture and washing steps before
amplification. The Ct values generated by standard real-time PCR
(Ct0) and MADCAT (Ctc) were then used to calculate the
capture efficiency, according to the following formula: Ec=2 ^
(Ct0- Ctc) * 100%.
2.6.Statistical
Analysis
Basic statistical analysis, including the calculation of means, standard
deviations and coefficient of variation was performed using Excel
software (Microsoft, Bellevue, WA). Two-tailed Fisher’s exact tests and
paired t tests were performed using GraphPad software version 8.1.1
(GraphPad, Inc., USA), with statistical significance set atP -value < 0.05.