We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

DCN Diagnostics and Asahi Kasei Fibers Launch Market Collaboration

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 30 Jul 2013

DCN Diagnostics (Carlsbad, CA, USA) and Asahi Kasei Fibers Corp. (AKFC; Osaka, Japan) will collaborate on a new colored nanoparticle designed to increase sensitivity in rapid assays. The new partnership will be based around AKFC's patented high-performance cellulose nanobead product, NanoAct. NanoAct represents a major step forward in visual labels for use in lateral flow and other rapid assays.

Utilizing cellulose technology matured and advanced for more than 80 years, Asahi Kasei developed patented and innovative colored nanobeads, NanoAct. Using the multicolored nanobeads as labels for lateral flow immunoassays, increased sensitivity, and faster test time is expected. NanoAct also has dispersion stability and does not require surfactants for aggregation control.

Consisting of a range of high intensity colored beads NanoAct can be multiplexed, generate higher sensitivity, lower CV's, and improved stability over many existing visual labels such as colloidal gold. This enables the application of lateral flow assays in demanding field assays for emerging infectious disease, consumer applications, biothreat detection, and biomarker testing.

DCN is a supplier of assay development, training, and consulting services to lateral flow assay developers and manufacturers. The company will be AKFC's distribution partner in North America and will be their preferred provider of Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) services to NanoAct users worldwide, except Japan.

"This new product line is a great addition to DCN's existing portfolio of high performance reagents and materials for lateral flow test producers," said DCN's president, Brendan O'Farrell. "This new product line is a great addition to DCN's existing portfolio of high performance reagents and materials for lateral flow test producers."

DCN and AKFC will be showcasing NanoAct at the AACC conference in Houston, Texas (USA), on July 28–August 1, 2013.

Related Links:
DCN Diagnostics
Asahi Kasei Fibers Corp.

Visit expo >

Gold Member

Troponin T QC

Troponin T Quality Control

Verification Panels for Assay Development & QC
Seroconversion Panels

New

Respiratory QC Panel

Assayed Respiratory Control Panel

New

Uric Acid and Blood Glucose Meter

URIT-10

Latest AACC 2013 News

Channels

Clinical Chemistry

view channel

Image: The tiny clay-based materials can be customized for a range of medical applications (Photo courtesy of Angira Roy and Sam O’Keefe)

‘Brilliantly Luminous’ Nanoscale Chemical Tool to Improve Disease Detection

Thousands of commercially available glowing molecules known as fluorophores are commonly used in medical imaging, disease detection, biomarker tagging, and chemical analysis. They are also integral in... Read more

Image: The research team has developed the uCR-Chip device to enhance kidney function testing (Photo courtesy of University of Manitoba)

Low-Cost Portable Screening Test to Transform Kidney Disease Detection

Millions of individuals suffer from kidney disease, which often remains undiagnosed until it has reached a critical stage. This silent epidemic not only diminishes the quality of life for those affected... Read more

New Method Uses Pulsed Infrared Light to Find Cancer's 'Fingerprints' In Blood Plasma

Cancer diagnoses have traditionally relied on invasive or time-consuming procedures like tissue biopsies. Now, new research published in ACS Central Science introduces a method that utilizes pulsed infrared... Read more

Carbon Nanotubes Help Build Highly Accurate Sensors for Continuous Health Monitoring

Current sensors can measure various health indicators, such as blood glucose levels, in the body. However, there is a need to develop more accurate and sensitive sensor materials that can detect lower... Read more

Molecular Diagnostics

view channel

Image: Single-cell analysis of neutrophils can identify increased population of activated neutrophils in newly diagnosed vasculitis patients (Photo courtesy of University of Osaka)

Blood Test Could Predict Relapse of Autoimmune Blood Vessel Disease

Neutrophils, once believed to be uniform in nature, have been discovered to exhibit significant diversity. These immune cells, which play a crucial role in fighting infections, are also implicated in autoimmune... Read more

Image: A simple blood test could detect trauma-related illnesses (Photo courtesy of iXpressGenes)

First-of-its-Kind Blood Test Detects Trauma-Related Diseases

In today’s fast-paced world, stress and trauma have unfortunately become common experiences for many individuals. Continuous exposure to stress hormones can confuse the immune system, causing it to misinterpret... Read more

Image: The landmark study reveals TRIM63 as a major genetic driver and risk factor for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (Photo courtesy of 123RF)

Key Gene Identified in Common Heart Disease Unlocks Life-Saving Diagnostic Potential

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the most prevalent hereditary heart disease globally, affecting approximately 1 in 200 individuals, and remains a leading cause of heart transplantation.... Read more

Image: Schematic overview of predicting preterm birth using promoter profiling of plasma cfDNA (Photo courtesy of Guo Z, et al., 2025, PLOS Medicine, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1004571)

Cheap Cell-Free DNA Based Test Accurately Predicts Preterm Birth

Preterm birth (PTB) occurs in around 11% of all births globally, leading to considerable morbidity and mortality for both mothers and their newborns. Identifying pregnancies at risk of PTB early in gestation... Read more

Hematology

view channel

Image: The 3-parameter CCRS model was devised specifically for patients diagnosed with clonal cytopenia (Photo courtesy of 123RF)

New Scoring System Predicts Risk of Developing Cancer from Common Blood Disorder

Clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS) is a blood disorder commonly found in older adults, characterized by mutations in blood cells and a low blood count, but without any obvious cause or... Read more

Image: The technology has the unique ability to detect challenging RhD variants that are typically excluded by other commercial tests (Photo courtesy of BillionToOne)

Non-Invasive Prenatal Test for Fetal RhD Status Demonstrates 100% Accuracy

In the United States, approximately 15% of pregnant individuals are RhD-negative. However, in about 40% of these cases, the fetus is also RhD-negative, making the administration of RhoGAM unnecessary.... Read more

Image: Leukocyte count represents an easily accessible, inexpensive clinical marker (Photo courtesy of 123RF)

WBC Count Could Predict Severity of COVID-19 Symptoms

The global health crisis caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus continues to impact millions of people worldwide, with many experiencing persistent symptoms months after the initial diagnosis. Cognitive impairment... Read more

Image: The high precision platelet counting technology reduces risks that can lead to errors in cancer diagnoses (Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

New Platelet Counting Technology to Help Labs Prevent Diagnosis Errors

Accurate platelet count testing is a significant challenge for laboratories. Inaccurate results can lead to misdiagnosis, missed diagnoses, and delayed treatment for a variety of potentially fatal conditions,... Read more

Immunology

view channel

Image: The cancer stem cell test can accurately choose more effective treatments (Photo courtesy of University of Cincinnati)

Stem Cell Test Predicts Treatment Outcome for Patients with Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer

Epithelial ovarian cancer frequently responds to chemotherapy initially, but eventually, the tumor develops resistance to the therapy, leading to regrowth. This resistance is partially due to the activation... Read more

Machine Learning-Enabled Blood Test Predicts Immunotherapy Response in Lymphoma Patients

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has emerged as one of the most promising recent developments in the treatment of blood cancers. However, over half of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) patients... Read more

Post-Treatment Blood Test Could Inform Future Cancer Therapy Decisions

In the ongoing advancement of personalized medicine, a new study has provided evidence supporting the use of a tool that detects cancer-derived molecules in the blood of lung cancer patients years after... Read more

Cerebrospinal Fluid Test Predicts Dangerous Side Effect of Cancer Treatment

In recent years, cancer immunotherapy has emerged as a promising approach where the patient's immune system is harnessed to fight cancer. One form of immunotherapy, called CAR-T-cell therapy, involves... Read more

Microbiology

view channel

Image: The lab-in-tube assay could improve TB diagnoses in rural or resource-limited areas (Photo courtesy of Kenny Lass/Tulane University)

Handheld Device Delivers Low-Cost TB Results in Less Than One Hour

Tuberculosis (TB) remains the deadliest infectious disease globally, affecting an estimated 10 million people annually. In 2021, about 4.2 million TB cases went undiagnosed or unreported, mainly due to... Read more

Image: The AI-based method can more accurately detect antibiotic resistance in deadly bacteria such as tuberculosis and staph (Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

New AI-Based Method Improves Diagnosis of Drug-Resistant Infections

Drug-resistant infections, particularly those caused by deadly bacteria like tuberculosis and staphylococcus, are rapidly emerging as a global health emergency. These infections are more difficult to treat,... Read more

Breakthrough Diagnostic Technology Identifies Bacterial Infections with Almost 100% Accuracy within Three Hours

Rapid and precise identification of pathogenic microbes in patient samples is essential for the effective treatment of acute infectious diseases, such as sepsis. The fluorescence in situ hybridization... Read more

Innovative ID/AST System to Help Diagnose Infectious Diseases and Combat AMR

Each year, 11 million people across the world die of sepsis out of which 1.3 million deaths are due to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) continues to weigh heavily,... Read more

Pathology

view channel

Image: The ready-to-use DUB enzyme assay kits accelerate routine DUB activity assays without compromising data quality (Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

Sensitive and Specific DUB Enzyme Assay Kits Require Minimal Setup Without Substrate Preparation

Ubiquitination and deubiquitination are two important physiological processes in the ubiquitin-proteasome system, responsible for protein degradation in cells. Deubiquitinating (DUB) enzymes contain around... Read more

Image: The AI model has over 90% accuracy in thyroid cancer diagnosis and also reduces consultation preparation time (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

World’s First AI Model for Thyroid Cancer Diagnosis Achieves Over 90% Accuracy

Thyroid cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide, and its precise management typically relies on two primary systems: (1) the 8th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) or ... Read more

Breakthrough Diagnostic Approach to Significantly Improve TB Detection

Tuberculosis (TB) remains the deadliest infectious disease globally, with 10.8 million new cases and 1.25 million deaths reported in 2023. Early detection through effective screening is crucial in identifying... Read more

Rapid, Ultra-Sensitive, PCR-Free Detection Method Makes Genetic Analysis More Accessible

Genetic testing has been an important method for detecting infectious diseases, diagnosing early-stage cancer, ensuring food safety, and analyzing environmental DNA. For a long time, polymerase chain reaction... Read more

Technology

view channel

Image: The HIV-1 self-testing chip will be capable of selectively detecting HIV in whole blood samples (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

Disposable Microchip Technology Could Selectively Detect HIV in Whole Blood Samples

As of the end of 2023, approximately 40 million people globally were living with HIV, and around 630,000 individuals died from AIDS-related illnesses that same year. Despite a substantial decline in deaths... Read more

Image: Schematic illustration of the chip (Photo courtesy of Biosensors and Bioelectronics, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bios.2025.117401)

Pain-On-A-Chip Microfluidic Device Determines Types of Chronic Pain from Blood Samples

Chronic pain is a widespread condition that remains difficult to manage, and existing clinical methods for its treatment rely largely on self-reporting, which can be subjective and especially problematic... Read more

Image: Pictorial representation of the working principle of a functionalized Carbon Dots CDs and EB based Func sensor (Photo courtesy of Toppari/University of Jyväskylä)

Innovative, Label-Free Ratiometric Fluorosensor Enables More Sensitive Viral RNA Detection

Viruses present a major global health risk, as demonstrated by recent pandemics, making early detection and identification essential for preventing new outbreaks. While traditional detection methods are... Read more

Image: In ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, light bounces off a crystal and briefly touches the sample, enabling researchers to take measurements (Photo courtesy of Georgia State University)

Smartphones Could Diagnose Diseases Using Infrared Scans

Rapid advancements in technology may soon make it possible for individuals to bypass invasive medical procedures by simply uploading a screenshot of their lab results from their phone directly to their doctor.... Read more

Industry

view channel

$Image: The collaboration aims to leverage Oxford Nanopore\'s sequencing platform and Cepheid\'s GeneXpert system to advance the field of sequencing for infectious diseases (Photo courtesy of Cepheid)$

Cepheid and Oxford Nanopore Technologies Partner on Advancing Automated Sequencing-Based Solutions

Cepheid (Sunnyvale, CA, USA), a leading molecular diagnostics company, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies (Oxford, UK), the company behind a new generation of sequencing-based molecular analysis technologies,... Read more

Image: The Grifols-IBL partnership will initially focus on biomarker panels for neurological and oncological conditions (Photo courtesy of Grifols)

Grifols and Tecan’s IBL Collaborate on Advanced Biomarker Panels

Grifols (Barcelona, Spain), one of the world’s leading producers of plasma-derived medicines and innovative diagnostic solutions, is expanding its offer in clinical diagnostics through a strategic partnership... Read more

Image: BIOTIA-ID is an NGS platform that accurately and sensitively diagnoses infectious disease-causing pathogens (Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

New Collaboration to Advance Microbial Identification for Infectious Disease Diagnostics

With the rise of global pandemics, antimicrobial resistance, and emerging pathogens, healthcare systems worldwide are increasingly dependent on advanced diagnostic tools to guide clinical decisions.... Read more

Image: The Procollagen-III-peptide (PIIINP) ELISA kit (Photo courtesy of Cisbio Bioassays)

Tecan Acquires ELISA Immunoassay Assets from Revvity's Cisbio Bioassays

Tecan Group (Männedorf, Switzerland) has entered into an agreement to acquire certain assets relating to key ELISA immunoassay products from Cisbio Bioassays SAS (Codolet, France), a subsidiary of the... Read more