Should carrier DNA or RNA be used for nucleic acid extraction of Varicella Zoster Virus (VZV) and Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) samples for artus® assays?

In general and especially for extraction from cerebrospinal fluid, serum or plasma, QIAGEN recommends the use of carrier RNA during nucleic acid extractions to increase the yield of extracted pathogen DNA. QIAGEN recommends to use Poly(A) RNA homopolymers from GE Healthcare (Cat. no. 27- 4110-02).