A new range of ELISAs provides differentiated analysis of antibodies against Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever. According to Immunological Methods for the Detection of Infectious Diseases (MiQ. 2017), separate detection of antibodies against phase 1 and phase 2 antigens of C. burnetii is recommended to aid discrimination of acute and chronic infections. Acute primary infections are characterized by IgM and later IgG antibodies against phase 2 antigens, while antibodies against phase 1 antigens occur only in chronic infections. Three new ELISAs from EUROIMMUN provide sensitive detection of IgM or IgG antibodies against phase 2 antigens or IgG antibodies against phase 1 antigens and thus support the differentiation of acute and chronic C. burnetii infections. In evaluation studies with precharacterized sera the three ELISAs demonstrated high sensitivities and high specificities, underlining their suitability for use in screening analyses. The ELISAs are fully automatable.

Q fever occurs worldwide and is transmitted to humans by direct or indirect contact with infected animals, consumption of unpasteurized milk or bites from infected ticks. Acute infections manifest with mild flu-like symptoms, whereby complications such as atypical pneumonia or remittent fever can occur. Chronic courses are characterized by infection durations of more than six months and mostly lead to chronic endocarditis. Diagnosis of Q fever is based primarily on serological methods.

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Streptococcus pneumoniae is the leading cause of community-acquired pneumonia and Legionella pneumophila causes costly hospital and ICU admissions. It is difficult to clinically distinguish between the two bacteria and due to different treatment of the diseases, guidelines recommend double testing.
The ImmuView Antigen test makes it now possible to readily distinguish between both microorganisms in patients with presumed infection, allowing clinicians to initiate the correct antibiotic treatment. It is the only rapid test that identifies both Streptococcus pneumoniae and Legionella pneumophila in one single test for urine and CSF samples. ImmuView is very simple to use, does not require any special equipment, and provides a result in just 15 minutes. In fact, in only 3 simple steps, it determines whether the patient has a double infection, a S. pneumoniae infection, a Legionella infection, or none of these.  

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ELITechGroup Molecular Diagnostics has recently launched a high-performance multiplex assay, the Respiratory Bacterial ELITe MGB Panel, for the diagnosis of bacterial respiratory infections, validated with ELITe InGenius, the company’s fully automated sample-to-result system.
Respiratory infections are common causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Regardless of the pathogen involved, similar symptoms can be observed making the diagnosis difficult to establish from only considering a symptom-based approach. Using a molecular diagnostic method is crucial to effectively determine the pathogens involved, prevent the misuse of antibiotics, and ensure an optimal patient management.
In combination with ELITe InGenius, the Respiratory Bacterial ELITEe MGB Panel is the first panel specifically designed to detect main relevant respiratory bacteria, CE-IVD validated with a sample-to-result system.  Respiratory Bacterial ELITe MGB Panel detects and differentiates in one single reaction M. pneumoniae, C. pneumoniae, and L. pneumophila.  The clinical study has demonstrated excellent performance: 100% diagnostic sensitivity and 100% diagnostic specificity were obtained with all targets.
The validation with ELITe InGenius offers many advantages to laboratories in comparison to other solutions available in the market: fully automated workflow from extraction to result interpretation, hand-on time reduced to a few minutes, and accurate results.
The CE-IVD ELITe InGenius respiratory menu will be further broadened in the coming months with a new Real-Time PCR assay for the detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and associated multidrug-resistant (rifampicin and isoniazid) forms.

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Beckman Coulter Diagnostics has announced achievement of CE Mark of its DxH 520 hematology analyser, designed to help physician office laboratories deliver high-quality results with increased productivity and ease. With as little as two environmentally friendly reagents, the compact 5-part differential system enhances efficiency and resource management through a comprehensive feature set that automates daily tasks. This reduces the amount of time spent on laboratory operations and frees time for patient care. The company used its time-proven flagship DxH 800 hematology solution as the predicate method for the DxH 520 system, establishing a strong correlation throughout the entire DxH line of hematology analysers. This provides a high level of continuity of care for clinical laboratories, regardless of whether they are small- or high-volume facilities. The DxH 520 analyser fills a need for a comprehensive solution that increases productivity while driving down costs for physician office laboratories. It features proprietary dynamic-gating method that improves sample flagging, and reduces slide reviews and technical interpretation, while maintaining effective clinical sensitivity. As an upgrade from a 3-part to a 5-part differential instrument, the DxH 520 analyser gives the clinician more information by which to make decisions when assessing a patient. A robust IT and data-management package helps reduce clerical errors and inefficiencies, and allows for easy retrieval of up to 30,000 patient samples. The system’s small 17 µL aspiration is ideal for puncture samples from infants, geriatric, oncology and critical care patients. Closed tube aspiration capability both simplifies analysis and ensures safety for laboratory technologists by eliminating sample exposure. The easy-to-use interface enables technologists to access any screen in three clicks or less, saving valuable time. The system’s two reagents and on-board cleaner can be replaced in five minutes or less, and its aqueous-based cyanide-, azide- and formaldehyde-free reagents eliminates disposal costs. This is in contrast to competitive systems that use five or more reagents— many of which are primarily composed of organic solvents that require additional costly disposal fees. The analyser’s low-energy requirements – half the power demand of other analysers in its category – further lower operating costs.

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