Researchers at the University of Notre Dame have discovered a way to make influenza visible to the naked eye, according to a new study. By engineering dye molecules to target a specific enzyme of the virus, the team was able to develop a test kit that emitted fluorescent light when illuminated with a hand-held lamp or blue laser pointer.

Scientists used test samples that mimicked that of an infected patient, and spiked the samples with the enzyme, called neuraminidase, which had been purified from flu virus. The samples emit red fluorescent light as a positive indication of the influenza virus. Blue fluorescent light signals a negative result. The same process also allowed scientists to determine which of two approved antiviral drugs would be a better treatment option for the individual patient.

While still a prototype, researchers believe that with optimization the diagnostic could be developed to be used in point of care clinics or the home environment for a rapid, easy to interpret test for the presence of influenza.

“Viral cultures are the gold standard for diagnosis of influenza but take several days to develop. By targeting an enzyme inherent to the virus and identifying its presence in a sample, we can make a rapid determination of the influenza in a patient for an efficient and immediate diagnostic that would improve patient treatment and reduce overuse of antivirals,” said Bradley Smith, Emil T. Hofman Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, director of the Notre Dame Integrated Imaging Facility and co-author of the study.

Smith and his team created a new method to detect neuraminidase, which is located on the surface of the virus. Researchers began by designing a dye molecule to emit red fluorescent light when it interacts with the neuraminidase. Following validation of enzyme recognition, researchers then tested the dye with two antiviral drugs used to treat influenza — Zanamivir, also known as Relenza, and Oseltamivir, known widely as Tamiflu. The antivirals are neuraminidase inhibitors. Samples containing dye and neuraminidase were combined with each of the antivirals and illuminated. Red fluorescence indicated the enzyme was still active, meaning the antiviral failed to inhibit the virus in that patient. Blue light indicated the enzyme had been blocked, presenting an effective treatment option.

University of Notre Damenews.nd.edu/news/researchers-shed-new-light-on-influenza-detection/

Siemens Healthineers has recently been commissioned to take over the clinical laboratory service operations for two new hospitals in Turkey built and operated as Public Private Partnership (PPP) of DiA Holding and Turkish Ministry of Health. The five-year contract grants a minimum of close to 30 million Euros in revenues. The amount is based on a guaranteed annual test volume, and is expected to reach up to over 100 million Euros revenue based on the anticipated test volumes. Siemens Healthineers will assume the laboratory services for all medical laboratory disciplines (Biochemistry, Microbiology, Hematology, Immunology, Emergency, Genetics, Pathology and Point of Care testing) within these hospitals. Siemens Healthineers also will provide the design, medical and technical equipment, appliances, consumables, service and maintenance, in addition to laboratory technical staff. “This project combines our expertise in equipping laboratories with our service portfolio. It is a proof point for how we enable our customers to meet their current challenges and to excel in their respective environments. The new business model is designed to support our customers in increasing efficiency and containing costs right from the beginning,” said Bernd Montag, Chief Executive Officer, Siemens Healthineers. This order will strengthen our portfolio and is consistent with our strategy.”
Siemens Healthineers will operate the laboratories at the hospitals in Bilkent, Ankara, and in Mersin in partnership with lab doctors from Turkey’s Ministry of Health. Both hospitals are being built by DiA Construction, a subsidiary of DiA, for the Turkish Ministry of Health as a public-private partnership.  The new hospitals are intended to improve healthcare as part of a Turkish government programme to restructure the country’s healthcare system, which was initiated in 2003. It is expected that around 92 million patients will benefit from the partnership over the next five years”.
According to the Turkish government, the Bilkent health campus — with almost 3,800 beds and an affiliated hotel, congress centre and commercial area — is the largest project in the healthcare sector ever constructed from scratch in the country. Beginning in mid-2018, more than 10,000 medical staff will be responsible for nearly 25,000 patients there on a daily basis. The new hospital in Mersin will hold about 1,300 beds and has become operational at the end of January 2017.
www.siemens.com/healthineers

More than 3,000 medical laboratory industry professionals expected to attend the launch edition of MEDLAB Europe at the Fira Gran Via in Barcelona, Spain. 

After many years of operating successful MEDLAB events around Africa, Asia and the Middle East, Informa Life Sciences Exhibitions has announced that the MEDLAB Series will be expanding its presence into Europe. Taking place at the Fira Gran Via in Barcelona, Spain, from 13-15 September 2017, more than 3,000 industry professionals are expected to attend Europe’s leading event for laboratory management and diagnosis.
With the European medical laboratory market expected to reach USD 15.5 billion (€ 14.2 billion) by 2024[1], a platform such as MEDLAB presents a huge opportunity for global laboratory industry leaders, including manufacturers, dealers and distributors, to make inroads into the European market. Housing international exhibitors and covering 2,000 sqm of exhibition space, MEDLAB Europe will give visitors from across the world an opportunity to access cutting-edge laboratory products, next-generation technology, innovative services and world-class educational content. 
According to Tom Coleman, Group Exhibition Director, MEDLAB Series: “The launch of MEDLAB Europe is in line with our global expansion strategy for our MEDLAB series of events. The increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, rising geriatric population coupled with the rising awareness towards early diagnosis, has positioned the European medical laboratory market as a critical market for manufacturers, services providers, and dealers and distributors from across the globe. MEDLAB Europe will generate substantial value for our customers and partners by driving further product innovation and deeper engagement in these specific markets.”

Over the three-day event, MEDLAB Europe will also offer a multi-disciplinary congress tackling current challenges and developments key to the European market, and leveraging the true potential of laboratory testing to dramatically improve patient outcomes across the continent.

The conference programme covers five main tracks including Point of Care Testing (POCT), Histopathology, Lab Management, Microbiology and Hematology. From new methods of effective lab management to the development of techniques in detecting diseases, the conferences will also review the expanding role of the laboratory medicine and discuss partnership between a clinician and a lab professional in providing delivery of care to every patient.
“The scientific programme at MEDLAB has been carefully designed in collaboration with some of the brightest minds in the medical laboratory industry in order to have a real impact on improving the health and wellbeing of patients across the region,” said Coleman.

¹ http://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/europe-in-vitro-diagnostics-ivd-market-analysis

www.medlabeurope.com

Royal Philips and LabPON, the first clinical laboratory to transition to 100% histopathology digital diagnosis, recently announced its plans to create a digital database of massive aggregated sets of annotated pathology images and big data utilizing Philips IntelliSite Pathology Solution. The database will provide pathologists with a wealth of clinical information for the development of image analytics algorithms for computational pathology and pathology education, while promoting research and discovery to develop new insights for disease assessment, including cancer.
Deep learning algorithms have the potential to improve the objectivity and efficiency in tumour tissue diagnosis. In recent years, ‘deep learning’ techniques for image analysis have quickly become the state of the art in computer vision and has surpassed human performance in a number of tasks. The challenge for executing deep learning techniques is having access to a database with sufficient high volume and high quality data from which to develop the algorithms. As one of the largest pathology laboratories in the Netherlands, LabPON will contribute its repository of approximately 300,000 whole slide images (WSI) they prospectively create each year to the database. This will contain de-identified datasets of annotated cases that are manually commented by the pathologist, and will comprise of a wide variety of tissue and disease types, as well as other pertinent diagnostic information to facilitate deep learning.
“Deep learning focuses on the development of advanced computer programs that automatically understand and digitally map tissue images in considerable detail: The more data available, the more refined the computer analysis will be.” Said Peter Hamilton, Group Leader Image Analytics at Philips Digital Pathology Solutions. “Together, LabPON and Philips have the competence and skills to realize this.”
During a time where the pathologist shortage is mounting and cancer caseloads are increasing, the accurate diagnosis and grading of cancer has become increasingly complex, placing significant pressures on pathology services. Technologies such as computational pathology, could help pathologists with tools to work in the most efficient way possible.
“The role of the pathologist remains important by making the definitive diagnosis, which has a high impact on the patient’s treatment. Software tools could help to relieve part of the pathologists’ work such as identifying tumour cells, counting mitotic cells or identifying perineural and vaso-invasive growth, as well as carrying out measurements in a more accurate and precise way,” said Alexi Baidoshvili, pathologist at LabPON. “This ultimately could help to improve the quality of diagnosis and make it more objective.”
Next to the development of computational algorithms for diagnostic use, Philips intends to make available the database to research institutions and other partners through its translational research platform. This could enable selected parties to interrogate and combine massive datasets with the goal to discover new insights that ultimately could be translated into new personalized treatment options for patients.
www.philips.com/digitalpathology