 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Laboratoires Réunis, home of Fast-track Diagnostics
Fast-track Diagnostics is a Luxembourg-based infectious diseases detection company that uses the most up to date technology - real time PCR - to detect a wide range of viruses, some bacteria and fungi, with parasites soon to follow. All the assays have been validated on large numbers of clinical samples and are in routine daily practice in our routine diagnostic laboratories and in facilities around the world. The same batches of primers, probes and positive controls are in daily use, so allowing us to understand the everyday needs of our users and to note any problems early.
Because we are academically trained physicians, we are constantly improving our assays. Any new clinical need that is identified in our routine practice can be made available to our customers once it has been validated and proven reliable. As these updates mostly consist of improvements to primers and probes, they can be rapidly passed on to our customers without the need for further training.
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
We have four key staff:
Prof Bernard Weber is managing partner of Laboratoires Réunis in Luxembourg. He is a clinical virologist with extensive experience of blood borne viruses and assay validation.
Dr Udo Margraff, also managing partner of Laboratoires Réunis, is a clinical pharmacist who has specialised in laboratory medicine and is an expert in transfusion medicine and laboratory automation.
Dr Miriam Steimer is a molecular biologist who is responsible for assay validation.
Florence Caillol is our quality manager. We have a number of consultants with expertise in specific disease areas and links with academic centres which help us design and validate new assays.
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
There are some features of our assays which suit the needs of small and large laboratories alike. All the assays are perfomed using identical methods and thermal cycling profiles, allowing more efficient use of real time PCR machines.
For example, one could test HBV, adenovirus, HSV and Chlamydia trachomatis in a single 96 well plate. The same is true for a range of RNA pathogens. All tests are done in 20 microlitre volumes allowing less master mix to be used, again cutting costs.
Most tests include internal controls to make sure that extraction and PCR have occurred correctly. Well-validated positive controls are supplied for every pathogen, which means that the laboratory does not have to either make, source or buy its own controls, again saving time and money for the laboratory.
We have found that the disease - rather than the pathogen - approach is the preferable route as the patient presents with a disease, usually not an obvious specific pathogen. Consequently, a fundamental principle of our approach is that it is systems based - from our catalogue you will see that all the significant pathogens can be detected for each disease category, for example respiratory, gastroenteritis or conjunctivitis, using one set of reagents. Often, all the pathogens are in just one tube, so keeping master mix costs lower, and machine requirements to a minimum. The same dyes are used for all our probes, so familiarity with one test means that introducing an additional test will need little additional expertise.
Writing standard operating procedures is easy as all the tests are performed the same way.
Everybody recognises the benefits of molecular diagnostics, but many cannot introduce it due to lack of experienced skilled staff or time to develop a comprehensive range of assays. We also believe that small to medium sized laboratories around the world need assays that are not over-priced yet also cannot afford in-house development and expensive, staff-intensive, ongoing validation. It is this bridge between “in house” and “commercial” which we wish to fill.
To keep costs lower for our customers, many of whom are in resource-poor countries, we do not supply master mix with our reagents. We recommend Ambion mastermixes and either Ambion, Qiagen or bioMerieux EasyMAG extraction. All our tests are primarily validated on ABI real time PCR machines; for information on data for other suppliers, please contact us via our technical help. Please contact us, or your local dealer, to discuss ordering all the reagents and equipment you will need for offering your pathogen detection service.
We offer tests either in lab-friendly runs of 4 patients (for small labs) or 12 patients (for medium sized labs) at a time, or in bulk for more experienced laboratories which wish to aliquot the reagents into amounts suitable for their workflow. The 4 patient runs come as 24 patient tests in a box, the 6 patient runs come as 48 patient tests per box and the 12 patient runs come as 96 tests per box. Because the volumes of reagents we supply are suitable for most laboratories' daily workflow patterns, the reagents are preferably single-use only. We do not recommend using the “left-overs” unless you have substantial experience in performing these tests.
We offer technical online help for advising the appropriate specimen types and testing routines for specific clinical patterns you see in your environment. We are happy to discuss the design and validation of new assays for your particular needs.
We hope our tests will improve the quality of service you can offer.
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
