According to the detection principles or methods, in vitro diagnostic (IVD) reagents can be divided into biochemical diagnostic reagents, immunodiagnostic reagents, molecular diagnostic reagents, microbiological diagnostic reagents, urine diagnostic reagents, coagulation diagnostic reagents, hematology and flow cytometry diagnostic reagents, etc. Biochemical, immunological and molecular diagnosis reagents are the three main types of diagnostic reagents in China, and nucleic acid diagnosis in molecular diagnosis currently occupies the main market. Biochips are an important trend for future development, but currently, due to high costs, development difficulties, and relatively small usage, their use is still limited.
IVD in vitro diagnostics reagents: biochemical diagnostics
Biochemical testing started early and, at the same time, because of its advantages of low cost and fast speed, even with the vigorous development of diagnostic technologies such as immunodiagnostics and molecular-diagnostics, it still maintains a large market share. It is expected that biochemical diagnosis will still be an important diagnostic method for a considerable period of time in the future.
If viewed from the perspective of the testing end, the detection principle of biochemical diagnostic testing projects is basically the same. It mainly uses specific substrates or products of specific biochemical reactions of certain substances, and then quantitatively detects the concentration of the target substance through a detection instrument--such as a spectrophotometer--to infer whether the content of certain biochemical substances in the human body, such as sugar, fat, and protein, is within the normal range.
IVD in vitro diagnostics reagents: immunological testing
Immunological testing is one of the largest, fastest-growing diagnostic-method fields with the most new additions in the IVD in vitro diagnosis field. In principle, immunodiagnostics use the specific binding of antigens and antibodies. However, there are many methods at the testing end, and various testing methods are used, such as radioimmunoassay (RIA), colloidal gold technology that uses chloroauric acid for binding with protein polymers under particular conditions, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) that uses an active enzyme as a label molecule, time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay (TRFIA) that uses long-lived fluorescence characteristics of lanthanide elements in chelating complexes for specific detection, and chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA), which combines the principles of chemiluminescence and immunoreaction.
RIA causes greater environmental pollution and is gradually being replaced by other immunodiagnostic methods. Currently, ELISA is a more mainstream method in immunodiagnostics.
IVD in vitro diagnostics reagents: molecular diagnostics
Nucleic acid diagnosis is the main part of molecular diagnosis currently, and the other part is biochip technology. The detection target of molecular diagnosis directly determines genetic material and expression forms that determine the characteristics of life, including DNA, RNA, and proteins. In terms of specific diagnostic technologies, the representational technology in nucleic acid diagnosis is polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and there are also DNA sequencing, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), DNA blotting, single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), and ligase chain reaction (LCR). Biochips include gene chips and protein chips. PCR is currently the main method used in in vitro diagnostics for nucleic acid testing.
Microbial Genome Sequencing's Impact on AgricultureFebruary 26, 2024Microbial genome sequencing has revolutionized the field of agriculture by providing valuable insights into the genetic makeup of microorganisms that play a crucial role in soil health, plant growth, ...view
What Is The Normal Metabolic Testing?March 11, 2024In the rapidly evolving landscape of healthcare diagnostics, metabolic testing has emerged as a cornerstone for understanding individual health profiles and tailoring interventions accordingly. Capita...view
Which is the Best Method for HLA Typing?March 11, 2024In the realm of immunogenetics, the significance of Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) typing cannot be overstated. It plays a pivotal role in various medical and research applications, including organ tra...view
What Is Chromosome Karyotype Analysis?April 4, 2023Chromosome karyotype analysis is a technique that traditionally involves observing the morphology of chromosomes. In recent years, fluorescence in situ hybridization technology has been used to detect...view
Why Do You Need Chromosomal Microarray Analysis?April 4, 2023Chromosomes are genetic material and the carriers of genes. The human body has 23 pairs of chromosomes, with 22 pairs being common to both sexes and called autosomes. The other pair determines sex and...view