Modern molecular diagnostic and companion diagnostic tests are becoming increasingly more complex. Since both mRNAs and miRNAs can be used as surrogate biomarkers, it should be easy to test for them simultaneously. Also, gene mutations, such as SNPs, often cause gain-of-function to the encoded protein that can mirror a fusion gene or lead to a drug resistance. Being able to assay for fusion genes and SNPs in the same well from the same sample prep is very powerful. Currently, different target types or assay types are separated into different wells, different runs and even different instrument types.
The ICEPlex is able to simultaneously analyze the expression of mRNAs, microRNAs as well as SNPs in one multiplex reaction. This makes the ICEPlex the first commercially available platform to allow quantitative multimodal analysis.
Currently, there are two main mutations that cause most of what have been traditionally been termed the Myeloproliferative Disorders, the BCR-ABL fusion and a JAK2 exon 14 mutation V617F. Using the ICEPlex, we are able to simultaneously detect all of the common fusion gene variants as well as the JAK2 exon 14 mutation. This demonstration assay shows how the ICEPlex System is a game changing platform, and what is necessary now for the complex companion diagnostics that are required.