RECENT NEWS

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has welcomed the recent publication of the Government’s Rare Disease Action Plan 2024, which highlights the work that has so far been done by the NIHR, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and others over the last year to better address the needs of people with rare diseases.

Neurocode USA, a specialised clinical laboratory offering testing solutions for neurological disorders, has announced the clinical launch of ALZpath Dx, an innovative and novel blood test that can be used in the screening, diagnosis and monitoring of Alzheimer's disease (AD) based on circulating level of pTau217 in the blood.

The Royal College of Pathologists (RCPath) has launched the 2024 edition of its Achievement Awards, with a new category recognising sustainability added this year.

Researchers at Metabolomycs, a California-based biotechnology company, have for the first time applied targeted mass spectrometry to show that pancreatic cancer arises through changes in cellular metabolism and that these changes can be measured with a simple blood test.

Aiosyn, a medical software company specialising in AI-powered pathology solutions for cancer and kidney disease, has announced the introduction of its NephroPath platform. By partnering with Aiosyn, CROs, biopharma, and researchers can accelerate the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD) therapies using new and quantitative insights offered through Nephropath’s kidney image analysis services.

INTEGRA Biosciences has launched its new MAG and HEATMAG modules for efficient, automated magnetic bead purification. These innovative solutions allow researchers to streamline several processing steps in molecular biology and proteomics workflows for maximum throughput.

Cirdan’s Pathology Horizons event returns for 2024 with its first post-pandemic event, taking place in Bath from 18-20 April. The agenda is now available and delegate registration are open.

Bruker Corporation has announced that it has entered into a definitive share purchase agreement to acquire ELITechGroup, excluding the carved out ELITech clinical chemistry business. The deal was agreed late in 2023 and has now been approved by workers’ council consultations in France and The Netherlands.

Hamburg-based laboratory products manufacturer Starlab has launched its new Starlab Vortex Mixer, offering top performance and user friendliness.

Proscia has announced that Pramana, an AI-enabled health technology company modernising the pathology sector, is now a Proscia Ready partner. Pramana joins the partner alliance to help life sciences organisations and diagnostic laboratories increasingly leverage enriched, high-quality data, including DICOM images, in their routine research and clinical operations.

PharmaKure, which develops precision medicines for Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases, has announced a new epigenetics collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University. This partnership will focus on ‘gene-based environmental biomarkers’, known as epigenetic markers, for calculating risk scores for Alzheimer’s disease.

Bio-Rad Laboratories has launched the new Vericheck ddPCR Replication Competent Lentivirus Kit and the Vericheck ddPCR Replication Competent AAV Kit.

The British Society For Microbial Technology (BSMT) has announced a change of venue for its Annual Microbiology Conference, which will now take place at UKHSA, Colindale. The date – 2 May – and programme of speakers remain unchanged.

The USA National Institutes of Health (NIH) has launched a clinical trials network to evaluate emerging technologies for cancer screening. The Cancer Screening Research Network (CSRN) will support the Biden-Harris administration’s Cancer Moonshot, and eight groups have received funding.

North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust has partnered with Solmedia, Roche and P+HS Architects to equip its new histopathology laboratory with workstations that will maximise the benefits of the laboratory environment. The new workstations will improve employee retention, increase efficiency and productivity whilst also lowering the risk of repetitive strain injury (RSI), sickness and fatigue.

PolyBio Research Foundation has announced the second phase of its Long Covid Research Consortium (LCRC), including the distribution of $15 million to fund research and clinical trials. With its new phase of research, PolyBio expands the consortium's international reach, adding teams based in France, the UK, and Sweden.

Proscia has established a new partner alliance to help laboratories grow their use of digital pathology through an increasingly comprehensive approach. Proscia Ready is made up of solution providers committed to delivering more than tightly integrated technologies so that life sciences organisations, including pharmaceutical companies and contract research organisations (CROs), and diagnostic laboratories can realise the full promise of digital pathology.

Dame June Raine, Chief Executive of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), has announced that she will be stepping down in the Autumn following five years in the role. She took up the post in August 2019, following a career in medicines regulation.

A cross-sector coalition of health and diagnostics organisations is calling for urgent action to combat the imminent threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Led by the British In Vitro Diagnostics Association (BIVDA), the coalition is highlighting missed opportunities to use proven diagnostic technology that can help to reduce prescribing of antibiotics when they are not needed.

A study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Lund University in Sweden shows that a blood test can be as good at detecting molecular signs of Alzheimer’s disease in the brain as cerebrospinal fluid tests approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Alzheimer’s diagnosis.