10 Developments at AACC 2022 in Chicago, Per Kalorama Information

Kalorama Information’s market analysts are at the 2022 American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) expo in Chicago.  They have observed the following notable developments from AACC today:

  1. Biosensor Wins Award:  Nanopath’s proprietary solid-state biosensing platform utilizes ultrasensitive optical detection, which eliminates the need for nucleic acid amplification, and provides clinically actionable genetic information in less than fifteen minutes.
  2. Traumatic Brain Injury IVD:  Abbott presented its i-STAT TBI plasma test, which is the first rapid handheld traumatic brain injury (TBI) blood test, which will help clinicians assess individuals with suspected mild TBIs, including concussions. Tests results are available within 15 minutes after plasma is placed in the test cartridge.
  3. Automation is a Focus.  Thermo has a system for automating liquid chromatography, Agilent for mass spectrometry and Abbott’s booth features its GLP automation front and center.  For Siemens Healthineers, in-instrument automation was a focus. 
  4. There are Over 330 Contract Manufacturers at 2022 AACC: Contract manufacturing, the making of IVD testing products, is itself a $15.6 billion industry, according to an upcoming Kalorama Information report
  5. Name Changes: Quidel is now QuidelOrtho.  BioFire is now BioMérieux.  Meridian and SD Biosensor have combined, but they have separate booths.
  6. Consistent Blood Smears: A CBC or diff test is only as good as the smear that originates the process.  Sweden-based CellaVision introduced their DIFF-Line, a result of the company’s acquisition of RAL Diagnostics in 2019.  The three-unit workflow incudes the company’s Smear Box, which makes a blood smear from a vial.  Then CellaVision’s Stain box ensures smears are stained consistently and in accordance with guidelines. And finally there’s the DC-1 single-slide automated smear analyzer, which has a high quality camera, microscope, and AI functionality.
  7. Liquid Biopsy: ANGLE presented their Parsortix® PC1 Clinical System, which is the first FDA cleared medical device for the capture and harvest of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patient blood for subsequent, user-validated analysis.  
  8. Werfen Showcases Improved Instruments: Bedford, MA-based Werfen introduced several new systems including the ROTEM sigma analyzer, which measures kinetic changes in the clot elasticity of whole blood samples; GEM Hemochron 100, which optimizes heparin dosing and enables rapid initiation of critical procedures for enhanced patient management; and GEMweb Live, a real-time viewer of comprehensive rapid test results for cardiac surgical procedures.   
  9. Smartphone Tests Can Predict Blood Clot Risk: People who take warfarin need frequent testing either in clinical labs or using expensive at home tests.  A team led by Kelly Michaelson, MD, at the University of Washington developed a test that quickly and inexpensively determines PT/INR using a vibration motor and smartphone camera to track movement of a copper particle in a drop of blood.
  10. Seegene Ready for Monkeypox and Other Viruses: Seegene’s Novaplex™ MPXV Assay can identify positive cases of the monkeypox virus in 90 minutes. The company swiftly developed the product to help curb the worldwide spread. Seegene plans to provide the assays to countries that have detected the virus.  Seegene’s platform can rapidly produce assays for tests as emerging viruses appear.