mRNA Assay Offers Applications in Clinical Biomarker Discovery

An mRNA quantitative assay is a simple, high-throughput, reproducible method, that offers a wide range of applications in clinical biomarker discovery and molecular testing to target personalized medicine.

The assay employs simple filtration of blood to capture leukocytes prior to extraction and purification of mRNA. This eliminates interference by the large amount of red blood cells in whole blood, and enables sensitive detection of changes in mRNA levels. The system adopts a 96-well microplate format, making it suitable for simultaneous processing of multiple samples. The drug response of an individual is simulated in a test tube by using whole blood samples stimulated with the drug. This system successfully brought a new "ex vivo" concept, which measures in vivo response in an in vitro assay and makes it possible to predict drug efficacy.

With this system, Hitachi Chemical (Tokyo, Japan) plans to conduct contract test services for pharmaceutical companies to find novel biomarkers and select subjects for clinical trials by predicting drug efficacy. It eventually aims to utilize the system as a companion diagnostic.

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