Levels of total cyclin E and low-molecular-weight cyclin E in tumor tissue, as measured by Western blot assay, correlate strongly with survival in patients with breast cancer.

There is a growing awareness that molecular diagnostics for detect-to-treat applications will soon need a highly multiplexed mutation detection and identification capability. In this study, we converted an open-amplicon microarray hybridization test for multidrug-resistant (MDR) Mycobacterium tuberculosis into an entirely closed-amplicon consumable (an amplification microarray) and evaluated its performance with matched sputum and sediment extracts. Reproducible genotyping (the limit of detection) was achieved with ∼25 M. tuberculosis genomes (100 fg of M. tuberculosis DNA) per reaction; the estimated shelf life of the test was at least 18 months when it was stored at 4°C. The test detected M. tuberculosis in 99.1% of sputum extracts and 100% of sediment extracts and showed 100% concordance with the results of real-time PCR. The levels of concordance between M. tuberculosis and resistance-associated gene detection were 99.1% and 98.4% for sputum and sediment extracts, respectively. Genotyping results were 100% concordant between sputum and sediment extracts. Relative to the results of culture-based drug susceptibility testing, the test was 97.1% specific and 75.0% sensitive for the detection of rifampin resistance in both sputum and sediment extracts. The specificity for the detection of isoniazid (INH) resistance was 98.4% and 96.8% for sputum and sediment extracts, respectively, and the sensitivity for the detection of INH resistance was 63.6%. The amplification microarray reported the correct genotype for all discordant phenotype/genotype results. On the basis of these data, primary sputum may be considered a preferred specimen for the test. The amplification microarray design, shelf life, and analytical performance metrics are well aligned with consensus product profiles for next-generation drug-resistant M. tuberculosis diagnostics and represent a significant ease-of-use advantage over other hybridization-based tests for diagnosing MDR tuberculosis.

The objective of this study was to develop and validate a simple, field-portable, microarray system for monitoring microbial community structure and dynamics in groundwater and subsurface environments, using samples representing site status before acetate injection, during Fe-reduction, in the transition from Fe- to SO(4)(2-)-reduction, and into the SO(4)(2-)-reduction phase. Limits of detection for the array are approximately 10(2)-10(3) cell equivalents of DNA per reaction. Sample-to-answer results for the field deployment were obtained in 4 h. Retrospective analysis of 50 samples showed the expected progression of microbial signatures from Fe- to SO(4)(2-) -reducers with changes in acetate amendment and in situ field conditions. The microarray response for Geobacter was highly correlated with qPCR for the same target gene (R(2) = 0.84). Microarray results were in concordance with quantitative PCR data, aqueous chemistry, site lithology, and the expected microbial community response, indicating that the field-portable microarray is an accurate indicator of microbial presence and response to in situ remediation of a uranium-contaminated site.

SUMMARY This report describes the development and pre-clinical testing of a new, random-access RNA sample preparation system (TruTip) for nasopharyngeal samples. The system is based on a monolithic, porous nucleic acid binding matrix embedded within an aerosol-resistant pipette tip and can be operated with single or multi-channel pipettors. Equivalent extraction efficiencies were obtained between automated QIAcube and manual TruTip methods at 106 gene copies influenza A per mL nasopharyngeal aspirate. Influenza A and B amended into nasopharyngeal swabs (in viral transport medium) were detected by real-time RT-PCR at approximately 745 and 370 gene copies per extraction, respectively. RNA extraction efficiency in nasopharyngeal swabs was also comparable to that obtained on an automated QIAcube instrument over a range of input concentrations; the correlation between threshold cycles (or nucleic acid recovery) for TruTip and QIAcube-purified RNA was R2 > 0.99. Preclinical testing of TruTip on blinded nasopharyngeal swab samples resulted in 98% detection accuracy relative to a clinically validated easyMAG extraction method. The physical properties of the TruTip binding matrix and ability to customize its shape and dimensions likewise make it amenable to automation and/or fluidic integration.

Multiplex PCR and hybridization occur within a closed-amplicon laminate, which includes gel arrays printed on unmodified and untreated plastic film.