Can you explain this in more detail please? I don’t know what these cycle are. Would love to understand.
“Can you explain this in more detail please? I don’t know what these cycle are. Would love to understand.”
A PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) test is widely used to identify cases of COVID-19.
According to Wikipedia: “Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method widely used to rapidly make millions to billions of copies of a specific DNA sample, allowing scientists to take a very small sample of DNA and amplify it to a large enough amount to study in detail.”
Each cycle of the the test will amplify any traces of DNA in the sample. So more cycles means more positive tests (and more false positives).
The norm is around 20 cycles, but the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended 40 for the COVID tests - until Inauguration Day, when they revised their guidance, to recommend a return to normal (20 cycle) sensitivity standards.
Sure. When testing for something like covid, replication cycles of the sample are used to increase the virus particles to a point they can be detected. Therefore, the more cycles you run to detect the covid, the less likely it is you actually have the virus. Anything over 20x is supposed to be considered nothing.
The inventor of this method, flat said that it cannot be used for diagnosis either. The problem is, you pick up everything, even dead virus particles.
At any rate, if you wish to say something is “there” you cannot replicate more than about 20x or you will detect virus amounts that are so minimal, that they are considered non existent.
During the Trump presidency, I was seeing reports of upwards of 45 replication cycles. This many replication cycles, you could have one dead particle, that you picked up in your nose hairs on the way to get tested, and come back positive.
They day Biden became president, the WHO (iirc, or it could have been CDC?) anyway they released an announcement that everyone should follow the testing recommendations, which provide the 20-25x threshold.
So now, the numbers will go down, because the replication cycles are back to normal. This was/is a perfect way to reduce numbers without many people noticing. But I was waiting for it, and was somewhat amazed they did it literally hours after Biden took office.
So now, people will look at the numbers, and say look, Bidens mask mandate ect saved us all. It is all a bunch of hooey.