Point-of-care (POC) testing techniques are essential in molecular diagnostics, particularly in resource-limited settings. The first step in molecular diagnostics is sample preparation which may include extraction of nucleic acids (NAs). Simple and efficient NA extraction is crucial for downstream applications such as pathogen detection, genetic analysis,...

Fluorescence based point-of-care molecular diagnostic systems are ubiquitous in healthcare. However, many tests require that the sample be sent to a reference laboratory and read by trained medical staff which can be expensive and result in delayed analysis. Portable systems have been developed, however, detecting multiple biomarkers requires a different...

Noninvasive sampling is critical for certain patient populations, such as hemophiliacs, neonates, elderly or immunocompromised individuals, especially if they require daily monitoring. Blood sampling is painful, inconvenient and often difficult and increases the risk of exposure to infectious agents, which can be devastating to immunocompromised populations....

Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA) are protein complexes residing on cell surfaces responsible for regulating immune responses. HLA haplotype sequencing is integral to the development of personalized therapies and diagnostics. It is also paramount to the understanding of T cell mediated immunity. There are over six classical major HLA loci with over 32,000...

Major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I) molecules are principal components of immune recognition. Peptide binding to MHC-I molecules is necessary for antigen presentation and T cell recognition. Understanding and predicting MHC-I binding has great utility in T cell therapies, vaccine development and treatment of complex human diseases. Unfortunately,...

While genomic research has identified many genetic targets that have the potential to modify the course of a disease, there has been little translation of that into genetic therapies. However, the discovery of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR) segments and the subsequent development of CRISPR systems in 2011 revolutionized...

T cell immunity is a fundamental component of the immune response to infections, cancer, and autoimmunity and is strongly impacted by polymorphisms in major histocompatibility complex (MHC) protein sequences. In particular, allelic MHC-I protein variants have been shown to influence patient outcomes to various viral infections, including SARS-CoV. While...

Despite recent advances in early detection and treatment, breast cancer remains a common and devastating health problem. With the advent of molecularly-targeted therapeutics, biomarkers that are associated with biological subtypes of cancer may be useful for predicting responses to therapeutic interventions. Researchers at the Biodesign Institute...

Ovarian cancer is one of the most common cancers among women, with over 21,000 new cases and over 14,000 deaths per year. If detected early, the 5-year survival rate is over 80%, but that drops to just 11% if detected at stage IV, and over 60% of patients are diagnosed with advanced disease. Early detection is hampered by limitations in current biomarkers,...

Despite recent advances in early detection and treatment, breast cancer remains a common and devastating health problem. Mammography screening detects only 70% of breast cancers and is particularly limited with basal-like subtype cancers (BLBCs). Additionally, BLBCs often present in women younger than 50, and those women are not recommended for routine...