Webinar: Multiplexed Cytokine Assays Can Explain Complex Disease

Cytokine and anti-cytokine patterns illuminate late-stage patient cases

Scientists at Cambridge University Hospital in the UK are using Luminex xMAP® Technology to measure cytokine response, which is helpful for certain diagnoses and prognoses and can also be used to elucidate diseases with complex anti-cytokine patterns. Principal investigator Rainer Döffinger presents several case studies in this webinar, originally presented at xMAP Connect Amsterdam 2017, illustrating how xMAP Technology makes a difference for his team.

Complicated Conditions

While the diseases interrogated vary widely — Döffinger’s cases include a complex condition primarily seen in Asia, inflammatory bowel disease, and severe combined immunodeficiency, among others — he says most cases that come to his team involve late-stage disease. Cytokine and anti-cytokine diseases are still being characterized, and many of the conditions are incredibly complicated.

Still, enough is known about this emerging field for investigations of cytokines to have an impact for some cases. Döffinger’s team uses Luminex screening for multiple auto-antibodies. He reports that the bead coupling technique is “extremely robust — it never fails” and that validation studies with cytokine protein microarrays have shown good reproducibility and concordance. He also notes that development of new tests on this platform is straightforward and rapid, and that running the assays is “extremely efficient in terms of time [and] material.”

“For us,” he concludes, “it’s the method of choice.”

Cytokine and anti-cytokine patterns illuminate late-stage patient cases

Complicated Conditions

Related Content