August 2013: Micropathology Ltd has added some new tests to its repertoire
- Enterovirus and Rhinovirus typing. Clinicians are increasingly interested in rhinovirus typing because there is mounting evidence that infection with type C viruses may lead to a more severe infection and prolonged illness, especially in children. Similarly, we find that enterovirus typing is often requested by physicians seeking to establish a full clinical picture. We are pleased to be able to offer these tests on specimens where these viruses have been detected.
- Salmonella enterica. The various serovars of Salmonella enterica may cause gastroenteritis, bacteraemia and localised infections. We are now able to offer an assay for the detection of a wide range of S. enterica serovars and subtyping of S. enteriditis and S. typhimurium.
- Burkholderia cepacia. Infection with Burkholderia cepacia complex is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in individuals with cystic fibrosis (CF). These organisms may be challenging to speciate using biochemical testing. We are currently offering a recA typing assay to both detect and speciate members of B. cepacia complex in respiratory samples from CF patients. See educational information sheet.
- HIV-2. HIV-2 is an important source of retroviral infection in West Africa but is also seen in other parts of Africa, India, the US and Europe. HIV-2 infection should be considered in individuals with risk factors for HIV infection, particularly if originating from West Africa, or with indeterminate HIV serology. We offer a two-target detection test for HIV-2 nucleic acid that may be performed as a proviral DNA screen on whole blood or as an RNA screen on serum/plasma.
These assays are based on nucleic acid amplification and, where appropriate, DNA sequencing.
Additional services
HBsAg quantitation
In view of the recent (June 2013) Nice Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Management of chronic hepatitis B http://guidance.nice.org.uk/CG165 we are pleased to remind you that we offer a quantitative HBsAg assay.
Hepatitis B genotyping
HBV genotype influences the natural history of infection, the emergence of pre-core and core promoter mutations and the response to interferon therapy. We currently offer assays for genotyping, drug resistance and pre-core/core promoter mutation identification.
New Sequencing Service now available
We have recently launched a high throughput sequencing service using the 454 GS Junior instrument from Roche diagnostics. We are currently able to undertake transcriptome and metagenomic sequencing and have experience in using this technology for large-scale bacterial typing projects. We are also working towards offering bacterial and viral whole-genome sequencing.
We are happy to discuss any projects that might benefit from high throughput sequencing. More information about this service can be found here on our website.
If you have any suggestions for further tests or services or additions to the website that you might find helpful please do let us know at info@micropathology.com. We are always happy to hear from you.
Coming soon to the Micropathology website – Facebook and Twitter accounts.