Latest Industry Insights

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants has led to concerns over the potential impacts there could be on the effectiveness of diagnostics and other countermeasures. Here, we look at the effects the B.1.1.7 variant may have on diagnostic tests.

2020 was an important year for proteomics. The COVID-19 global pandemic cast a spotlight on the field's clinical utility in the fight against a public health crisis, from which there are many lessons to be drawn that will undoubtedly influence the landscape of the field for years to come. Technology Networks spoke with Rohan Thakur, executive vice president of Life Sciences Mass Spectrometry at Bruker Daltonics, to discuss the current state-of-play in proteomics.

In a recent study, CTCs were harvested to investigate the causes of brain metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer patients. We spoke to Andrew Newland, CEO, ANGLE, to learn more about the study, the challenges of harvesting CTCs and how the Parsortix system overcomes some of these challenges.

How do we take our understanding of the different stages of the omics cascade to the next level? We analyze them simultaneously. With the recent launch of its Chromium Single Cell Multiome ATAC + Gene Expression solution, 10x Genomics is making advances towards that goal. Technology Networks spoke with Ben Hindson to learn more.

One of the biggest challenges that scientists and healthcare professionals are facing during the COVID-19 pandemic is the high rate of clinical variability. Whilst some patients present as asymptomatic, others are developing more severe symptoms such as pneumonia, and some cases are ultimately proving fatal. Why? We speak with Dr Salvatore Viscomi to learn more.

Professor Ron Heeren recently embarked on a study to bring together the spatial molecular information that is provided by MALDI-MSI with the microproteomic characterization generated by LC-MS on the same tissue specimen, on a single instrument. Heeren and colleagues were successful in this feat. Their work is published in the journal Proteomics and forms the basis of this interview.

Clear Labs is a company focused on the latest technologies in molecular testing, machine learning, automation and bioinformatics – it develops fully automated next-generation sequencing and in vitro diagnostics solutions. Technology Networks had the pleasure of speaking with ClearLabs’ CEO Sasan Amini, to learn more about the company’s NGS-based COVID test, Clear Dx™.

Technology Networks recently spoke to Dr Gary Keating, Chief Technical Officer at Hibergene Diagnostics, to learn more about LAMP technology and the advantages it could offer for COVID-19 testing. Gary also discussed some of the challenges faced when developing diagnostics and how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted diagnostic design and manufacturing.

Technology Networks spoke to Dr Iswariya Venkataraman, Scientific Affairs Lead at EUROIMMUN US, to learn about the differences between the S and N proteins and what makes them suitable as target antigens in serology testing. Iswariya also discussed the findings and implications from a study which cautioned against the extensive use of tests that detect antibodies against the N protein only.

Technology Networks spoke to Jeff Hawkins, Dr Jerry Yeo, and Dr Abhijit Datta, to learn how the information provided by antibody tests can be used appropriately during the COVID-19 pandemic.