• PerkinElmer (Waltham, Massachusetts) reported a complete analytical solution for the determination of melamine adulteration in protein-based foods. With the release of the Melamine Analyzer, based on the innovative Clarus® 600 T Gas Chromatograph/Mass Spectrometer (GC/MS), PerkinElmer is the first in the industry to provide such a solution using GC/MS technology, it said. The Melamine Analyzer includes all instrumentation, consumables and applications resources needed to screen for melamine contamination, conforming with the most recent guideline from the FDA. Melamine is a nitrogen-rich industrial chemical that became well-known in North America recently after its presence in wheat gluten was linked with renal failure in dogs and cats. PerkinElmer specializes in the health sciences and photonics markets.
• AMDL (Tustin, California) said that it has filed with the FDA for clearance to market its DR-70 (FDP) ELISA tumor marker test for use as an aid in monitoring patients previously diagnosed with colorectal cancer. AMDL’s DR-70 (FDP) ELISA is an in vitro diagnostic test for the DR-70 (FDP) antigen in human serum. When cleared to market by the FDA, it will be used as an aid in monitoring the disease status in patients who have been previously diagnosed with colorectal cancer. AMDL believes that the test will be useful as an aid in monitoring cancer patients throughout the course of the disease, including after primary surgery, and in determining the response to therapy. AMDL makes tests for the early detection of cancer.
• Applied NeuroSolutions (Vernon Hills, Illinois) reported that a peer-reviewed paper, “Prediction and longitudinal study of CSF biomarkers in mild cognitive impairment,” will be published in an upcoming print edition of Neurobiology of Aging. The paper describes a longitudinal evaluation in the transition from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to AD using five different cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) markers. The APNS P-Tau 231 biomarker was the strongest predictor of the decline from MCI to AD. In this longitudinal study, eighty-six subjects were followed for two years, including twenty-two MCI patients that subsequently declined to AD. The APNS P-Tau 231 biomarker was the only biomarker that exceeded the recommended 80% threshold of sensitivity and specificity, with the highest specificity among all biomarkers analyzed in the study in predicting decline from MCI to AD. Applied NeuroSolutions specializes in products for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
• Immersion (San Jose) reports that it has released a new procedural module for its laparoscopic surgical simulator — the LaparoscopyVR system. The new Running the Bowel (RtB) surgical simulation module trains procedural skills commonly needed during trauma, general, OB/GYN, bariatric, and colon-rectal surgery. The new RtB module makes the LapVR surgical simulator the first to provide interaction with the bowel’s mesentery connective tissue, providing a very realistic training environment for learning inspection, measurement, and manipulation of the small intestine. The LapVR is designed as a complete system with tightly integrated TouchSense haptic hardware and software. The surgical simulator provides a physics-based environment that allows authentic and realistic graphical movement of tissue and organs integrated with realistic tactile feedback forces felt through the trocar arms and handles. Immersion makes touch feedback technology.