Top 7 Clinical News Stories of October 2015
Read the most interesting new stories published by SelectScience last month
6 Nov 2015
Abbott and Real Madrid soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo teamed up this month to help inspire young people around the world to donate blood
From advances in game-changing liquid biopsy research in cancer diagnostics, to the FDA approval of a brand new rapid meningitis test, SelectScience has published some fascinating news stories this month. Read our round-up of the top 7 articles published in October 2015.
1. Scientists Solve Structure of Virus Linked to Diabetes, Infant Death, and Neurological Conditions
An international group of scientists have solved the atomic structure of the Ljungan virus, an infection of rodents that is also associated with a variety of dangerous diseases in humans, including diabetes, neurological disease, and sudden infant death.
2. EKF’s PointMan™ Used in Successful Liquid Biopsy Research
EKF Diagnostics has announced that results from a study involving EKF Molecular’s PointMan™ DNA enrichment technology have been published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research which focuses on innovative clinical cancer research studies.
3. FDA Signs Off on BioFire Diagnostics' Rapid Meningitis Test
The FDA has cleared BioFire's FilmArray ME panel through its de novo classification process, which it reserves for low- to moderate-risk devices with no market precedent. Regulators based their decision on three studies including one with 1,560 patients suspected of having meningitis and encephalitis, which found that FilmArray performed as well as traditional testing methods to pinpoint the infections.
4. Beckman Coulter Diagnostics DxN VERIS Molecular Diagnostics System: Positive Trial Results Reported
Beckman Coulter has announced the results of recently commissioned independent trials of the new DxN VERIS Molecular Diagnostics System which showed enhanced workflow and productivity over incumbent systems. A UK trial was undertaken within The Department of Virology at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
5. Siemens Healthcare Joins CANCER-ID in Search of New Tools to Detect and Manage Cancer
Siemens Healthcare has joined the CANCER-ID consortium, an initiative of the European Union’s Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI), to explore the potential of blood-based biomarkers to revolutionize the detection and treatment of cancer. CANCER-ID brings together experts from academic and clinical research to establish the clinical utility of liquid biopsies for the detection and treatment of cancer.
Bio-Rad’s Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR™) technology identifies viral RNA mutations in clinical samples with greater precision, sensitivity, and reproducibility than quantitative reverse-transcription PCR (RT-qPCR), according to a new study in the Journal of Virological Methods (November 2015).
7. Join The Movement: #BETHE1DONOR to Donate Blood and Potentially Help Save a Life
Blood is an essential component for life, but many people do not think about it until the need is critical. Each year 234 million major operations are performed worldwide, many involving blood transfusions or treatments resulting in a continuous need for donations. Abbott and Real Madrid soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo are partnering to bring even more attention to this important cause.