ABSTRACT
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious respiratory disease that can be transmitted through human exhaled breath and has a huge impact on global public health. Early diagnosis of COVID-19 and isolation of positive cases have proven to be fundamental to containing the spread of infection. While polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods remain the gold standard for diagnosing COVID-19, the urgent need for rapid and large-scale diagnosis has promote to the development of alternative diagnosis methods. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have shown great potential as biomarkers for a variety of diseases. VOC profiles can be altered by the pathogen itself, host-pathogen interactions, or host immune responses during infection. Exhaled VOC-based detection technology provides a simple, rapid, non-invasive, and immediate diagnostic method that is expected to be a promising alternative for large-scale screening and ultimately optimizing COVID-19 prevention and control strategies. In here, we have reviewed the principle of VOC detection for COVID-19, the current research status, the existing shortcomings and the prospects.