Advances in autoimmune disease diagnostics
The European market for autoimmune disease diagnostics has demonstrated sustained growth due to advances in detection technology and automation, according to a new analysis from Frost & Sullivan (F&S)
Laboratory
Integrated healthcare solutions
Siemens Healthcare announced the signing of an agreement with Hospital Clinic in Barcelona, Spain, to integrate the use of laboratory diagnostics, imaging and information technology systems with the intent to improve management of patient care from early detection and diagnosis of diseases or conditions to patient treatment.
New insights of the role of microbial communities in the Human Gut
454 Life Sciences, a Roche company, announced that a team of researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have characterized the human gut microbiome by sequencing the microbial communities of adult twins and their mothers with the Genome Sequencer FLX System.
New from China
Founded in 1991 in Shenzhen, China, the firm Mindray aims to deliver high-quality competitively priced medical devices to make healthcare accessible and affordable worldwide.
Roche launch the new BenchMark® ULTRA
With the acquisition of Ventara Medical Systems, Roche hopes to move several steps further forward in their goal for personalised medicine that improves diagnostics and ultimately, clinical outcomes.
Roche expands its portfolio of laboratory information systems
Roche and Swisslab GmbH, Berlin announced yesterday that Roche has acquired all the shares in Swisslab. Swisslab is the leading provider of Laboratory Information Systems (LIS) in Germany. The transaction is expected to be completed in the first half of 2009.
Eppendorf cycler can now also be used in medical diagnostics
PCR plays a major part in medical diagnostics. From a few drops of blood, a tissue sample or a bacterial colony will be sufficient to confirm the presence of specific DNA. This approach relies, however, on a prior understanding of the mechanisms underlying the condition e.g. the causative organism in a viral disease. Standard primers are currently available for many pathogenic organisms which is…
Deal to progress Alzheimer's vaccine
AFFiRiS GmbH has granted GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals S.A. (GSK) exclusive rights to develop and commercialise its Alzheimer's disease vaccine candidates. Two are currently in Phase I clinical development, and others are in preclinical development.
Fast and effective: The Dräger DrugTest 5000
Is there a case of drug abuse ore not? In case of an emergency physicians need a quick answer to decide about the further treatment. The Dräger DrugTest 5000 could deliver the information of up to six different drug classes within minutes.
Innovative surface leads to considerably higher cell yields
Advanced TC™ cell culture products have an innovative polymer modification which forms a special surface that optimises cultivation of fastidious cells and facilitates complex experimental approaches.
Confocal microscopy ensures the quality of medical devices
Medical products have to fulfil exacting requirements. That is why surface properties are increasingly analysed with optical 3D measurement systems.
Celiac test kits match multi-centre study demands
The results of the recent Multi-Centre Celiac Serology Study undertaken to define the optimal serological screening approach to Celiac Disease clearly showed that dual or combined isotype (IgA+IgG) transglutaminase screening can be advocated as a sensitive and specific alternative to endomysial antibody testing in the assessment of Celiac Disease.
On-the-spot multi-task lab-on-a-chip
A new lab-on-chip system, the ivD-platform, which quickly determines, on site, the contents and parameters of biological samples, such as blood or saliva, with the help of immunoassay or DNA analysis, was presented at Biotechnica this autumn.
World First Early Stage Diagnostic Test for Ovarian Cancer
There is now new hope for women around the world, with the launch of an early detection test for ovarian cancer, according to HealthLinx Limited. The test, developed in Melbourne by HealthLinx scientists in collaboration with ARL Pathology, is called the OvPlex™ Panel and works by identifying whether five biomarkers (proteins) are present in a blood sample.
Results from C. difficile test in less than 30 minutes
The US firm Inverness Medical has launched a new rapid test as an in vitro diagnostic aid for Clostridium difficile associated disease (CDAD).
Eight languages spread patient education
Lab Tests Online, an online encyclopaedia on laboratory testing and related conditions, is expanding to include eight languages.
Automated plate streaking
The vital, routine task of plate streaking to isolate a pure culture is inefficient and time-consuming, significantly slowing microbiologists' responses.
Small device counts viruses in minutes
The machine 'qViro' which is the size of a coffee grinder will make virus counting much cheaper than traditional virus counting technology. The revolutionary new invention offers the potential to quickly muster and count the number of viruses in a sample in minutes - it is a portable, desktop instrument, powered from the USB drive of a computer - current competitors are the size of washing…
Urinalysis strip test
Siemens new Clinitek Micro-albumin 9 Urinalysis Strip is now available in Europe. The strips, which can be used on the firm's Clinitek Status analyser, or the Clinitek Advantus analyser, provide nine tests to detect and monitor kidney disease.
Non-invasive prostate cancer test may reduce biopsies
The French firm bioMérieux and ProteoSys, based in Mainz, Germany, have signed a license and development agreement for Annexin 3 to be used to develop a urine-based, confirmatory diagnostic test for prostate cancer.
Protein cloning technology gains European patent
London and Cambridge-based biopharmaceutical research firm Domainex Ltd has received a European patent for its Combinatorial Domain Hunting (CDH) Technology, which enables the cloning and expression of recombinant proteins, or parts of proteins (domains), from challenging molecular targets.
Siemens opens Cologne research centre
Siemens Healthcare has opened a new research centre in Cologne, where around 40 employees are developing new diagnostic tests to describe the molecular characteristics of breast cancer cells, to help physicians to select individual therapy.
The AU480 clinical chemistry anaylser
Olympus will present the latest member of its clinical chemistry analyser family at Medica.
Expansion for range of cardiovascular genetic tests
Lab21 is to expand its portfolio of genetic tests for inherited cardiac syndromes.
The joint AACC/AACB conference
The American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) and the Australasian Association of Clinical Biochemists (AACB) are joining together for the second time for a conference on major changes facing laboratorians in coming years, under the banner Laboratory Medicine - Into the Future.
