Featured Products

HCV Ag

Abbott announces the availability of the new ARCHITECT HCV Ag assay, a Chemiluminescent Microparticle Immunoassay (CMIA) for the quantitative determination of core antigen to Hepatitis C virus (HCV) in human serum and plasma.

Hepatitis C virus core Antigen (HCV Ag) is a direct marker for the diagnosis of HCV infection and can be used as confirmation of active disease, screening of patients at high risk for HCV infection (e.g dialysis patients, IV drug users) and therapy monitoring.

Hepatitis C is a blood borne infection caused by the Hepatitis C virus. HCV infections are characterized by two features:

A high rate of asymptomatic infections in the acute phase, with current estimates up to 75%
A high chronicity rate. More than 50% of infected patients become chronic and estimates are between 60 and 90%. Over time, chronic HCV infections may lead to cirrhosis and liver carcinoma.

HCV Ag is detectable well before the occurance of antibodies against HCV. The serodiagnostic window, the time when the virus is present but antibodies are not, may last as long as 70 days. A negative antibody test does not rule out an HCV infection in the early incubation phase.

Active HCV infection, acute or chronic, is characterized by the presence of HCV antigen. HCV antibodies are useful as an indicator of past HCV infection and do not indicate current viraemia or elimination of virus from the patient.

ProGRP

Abbott announces the availability of a new fully automated chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) for the quantitative determination of ProGRP in human serum and plasma on the ARCHITECT immunoassay analyzer.

The new ARCHITECT ProGRP assay complements other clinical methods as an aid in the differential diagnosis and clinical management of patients with Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC), i.e.monitoring therapy response & early detection of disease recurrence.
Since the incidence of SCLC is low, it is not recommended to use the assay as a screening tool.

ProGRP is a precursor of Gastrin Releasing Peptide (GRP) and is produced in 60-65% of SCLC’s.
Preliminiary studies report that ProGRP demonstrates a sensitivity relationship (UAC-ROC) significantly greater than those calculated for more widely known SCLC markers.
In addition, evidence showing cumulative sensitivity of the combination of ProGRP and NSE, resulted in the recent NACB (USA National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry) recommendation to combine both markers for the differential diagnosis and monitoring of SCLC.

Myeloperoxidase (MPO)

Abbott announces the soft launch of Myeloperoxidase (MPO), a fully automated method for the determination of cardiac adverse events on the ARCHITECT immunoassay analyzer, which completes cardiac menu on the ARCHITECT.

MPO is a potential and innovative marker:

For early detection of unstable plaques
Of cardiovascular disease and a potential target for treatment
Of risk stratification for future adverse events

Potential patient groups that would profit due to MPO measurement:

ACS patients
Heart failure patients
Apparently healthy patients (risk group)

MPO provides independent prognostic information to Troponin / BNP and CRP
ARCHITECT MPO provides the first automated assay

Homocysteine

Abbott Diagnostics announces the availability of a new, fully automated method for the determination of hyperhomocysteinemia and homocystinuria . This method is a quantitative determination of total L-homocysteine in human serum or plasma on the ARCHITECT immunoassay analyzer.

Homocysteine values can assist in the diagnosis and treatment of patients suspected of having hyperhomocysteinemia and homocystinuria.”

Hyperhomocysteinemia and homocystinuria are: -

Independent, modifiable risk factors for CAD, stroke and deep vein thrombosis.
Strong independent risk factors for developing dementia & Alzheimer's disease.

Associated with pregnancy complications and birth defects.

MULTIGENT Lithium

Abbott Diagnostics launches MULTIGENT Lithium, which completes the TDM menu for ARCHITECT c Systems. It complements the strong market trend for the consolidation of TDM testing to clinical chemistry systems. Lithium is a welcome addition to Abbott's overall successful and comprehensive TDM menu.

Lithium is used to treat maniac depressive illness. Other drugs used to treat maniac depressive illnesses include Carbamazepine(Tegretol) and Valproic Acid (Depakene). Lithium is a drug that is widely used to treat maniac depressive illness (bipolar disorder).

Lithium is sometimes prescribed, in addition to an antidepressant, for patients with depression who are not responding well to other medications. Lithium is usually administered as Lithium carbonate.

Lithium is completely absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract; peak serum/plasma levels occur 2 to 4 hours after an oral dose. Lithium half-life in serum is 48 to 72 hours. It is cleared through the kidneys so reduced renal function can prolong clearance time.

Lithium acts by enhancing the uptake of neurotransmitters, which produces a sedative effect on the central nervous system.

New Fully Automated Toxo IgG Avidity Assay

Abbott Diagnostics announces the availability of a new, fully automated method for the determination of Toxo IgG avidity in human serum or plasma on the ARCHITECT immunoassay analyzer. The new Toxo IgG Avidity assay complements the ARCHITECT Toxo serology assay panel.

Distinguishing between new and older toxoplasmainfection has traditionally been a challenging task for clinicians and time-consuming for laboratories.

The novel AVIcomp assay technology applied in the Toxo IgG Avidity assay enables reliable determination of Toxo IgG antibody avidity to help rule out a newly acquired infection during pregnancy. The automated ARCHITECT Toxo testing algorithm can perform Toxo IgG and IgG Avidity testing from a single sample in less than 2 hours making Toxo testing easier than ever before.

With the addition of the ARCHITECT Toxo M assay in development, the ARCHITECT system will be able to provide complete Toxo serological testing, including a fully automated reflex testing algorithm.

New Fully Automated CMV IgG Avidity Assay

Abbott Diagnostics announces the availability of a new fully automated method for the determination of CMV antibody avidity in human serum or plasma on the ARCHITECT immunoassay analyzer. The new CMV Avidity assay completes the ARCHITECT CMV serology assay panel.

Like all herpes viruses CMV establishes latency in the host following primary infection. In this latent stage the virus can reactivate due to immunosuppression or other stimuli and eventually causing IgM antibodies to be reactive. Distinguishing between primary and non-primary infection has been a challenging question to clinicians and time-consuming for laboratories.

The novel AVIcomp assay technology employed with the CMV IgG Avidity assay enables reliable detection CMV IgG antibody avidity to aid in the differentiation of primary and non-primary infections. The automated intellectual ARCHITECT CMV testing algorithm can perform CMV IgG, IgM and IgG Avidity from a single sample in less than 2.5 hours making CMV testing easier than ever before.

New Automated assay for Hemoglobin A1c

Abbott Diagnostics announces the availability of a new fully automated method for the determination of Hemoglobin A1c in human whole blood on the AxSYM immunoassay analyzer. Percent HbA1c measurements are used in the clinical management of diabetes to assess the long-term efficacy of diabetic control.

The new AxSYM HbA1c assay improves laboratory workflow with high throughput and a direct whole blood application. The method is also NGSP certified for confidence in results.

The new HbA1c test extends the AxSYM analyzer menu to 83 assays