Figure 2.

Courses of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA loads as determined by RT-qPCR throughout the disease from the time of diagnosis in blood (A), LRT (B), and URT (C). The respective mean and SEM of SARS-CoV-2 RNA loads are illustrated. Red lines refer to nonsurvivors; light blue lines refer to survivors. Samples < LOD were set to 1×10¹ copies/mL, and samples < threshold of 1×10³ copies/mL were set to 1×10² copies/mL to allow for logarithmic presentation. Abbreviations: LOD, limit of detection; LOQ, limit of quantification; LRT, lower respiratory tract; RT-qPCR, reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction; SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; SEM, standard error of the mean; URT, upper respiratory tract.