Insight Genetics' Insight RET Screen
Insight Genetics has launched Insight RET Screen, a CLIA-validated assay that detects oncogenic RET (rearranged during transfection) expression in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.
Chromosomal fusions involving the RET tyrosine kinase gene are driver mutations in papillary thyroid cancer and in approximately 2 percent of lung cancers. In NSCLC, the most frequently observed fusion partner with the RET kinase domain is the KIF5B gene (62 percent) with a smaller fraction fused with the CCDC6 (16 percent) or NCOA4 genes (8 percent). The current standard in diagnostic assay drug-development partnerships has been to use RET fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to identify patients for clinical trial enrollment.
Insight Genetics' solution provides results within 48 hours or less and with minimal tissue requirement. In a head-to-head comparison to a RET FISH assay, the Insight RET Screen identified 67 percent more patients who were RET fusion-positive. The Insight RET Screen complements the portfolio of assays currently offered by Insight Molecular Labs that detect targetable mutations including ALK, ROS1, EGFR, KRAS, and BRAF.
IntegenX RapidHit ID
IntegenX has launched RapidHit ID, a rapid forensic DNA profiling platform. The new platform has a compact footprint and can generate a single STR profile in less than 90 minutes. It features a large touchscreen interface that can play on-board training videos; a camera that can act as a barcode reader; password protecttion; and fingerprint and facial recognition capabilities. It is also equipped to interface with networks for DNA database upload and search. Consumables, which can be stored at room temperature for six months, include a disposable cartridge containing the capillary eletrophoresis elements supporting up to 250 assays, as well as single-use cartridges for buccal swab testing. Click here to read more about the RapidHit ID platform.
PathoGenetix Resolution Microbial Genotyping System
PathoGenetix has launched the Resolution Microbial Genotyping System for rapid bacterial serotyping and strain typing. The fully automated system is designed for food safety testing and foodborne illness outbreak investigations, and includes the instrument, pathogen databases, bioinformatics and data-analysis software, and pathogen-specific assays.
The system is based on the company's proprietary Genome Sequence Scanning (GSS) technology, initially developed to detect biothreat pathogens in environmental samples under a five-year, $50 million contract from the US Department of Homeland Security. The GSS technology isolates and analyzes DNA direct from complex mixtures without the need for a pure culture isolate, and provides molecular serotype and strain type information for target bacteria in just five hours. The strain type information provided by GSS is comparable to pulsed field gel electrophoresis, the current gold standard for pathogen identification, the company said.
The Resolution features a comprehensive pathogen library that includes 371 strains of Salmonella, 402 strains of Escherichia coli, and 53 strains of Listeria.