Qiagen has launched the QIAamp kit, for the extraction of free-circulating fragments of tumour- and foetal-derived nucleic acids, as well as viral nucleic acids in human blood.
The QIAamp circulating nucleic acid kit is expected to ease corresponding biomarker research and the introduction of molecular tests in prenatal diagnostics, which can replace risky, invasive procedures such as amniocentesis.
The analysis of DNA and RNA fragments also allows virtually non-invasive approaches to the early and highly sensitive detection of different malignancies such as colon or lung cancer, and can also help to monitor the progress of the disease and assess patient outcomes.
Likewise, foetal DNA and RNA fragments circulating in maternal blood can be used for the non-invasive molecular detection of congenital disorders in prenatal diagnostics.
The QIAamp kit allows the isolation and purification of all types and sizes of nucleic acids from large-scale plasma and serum samples, for high yields of isolated molecules and high sensitivity of downstream applications.
This eases the molecular detection of viral infections, where extraction of even the scarcest traces of genetic material is a key requirement for reliable results.
Qiagen plans to extend the use of the product to urine samples and the isolation of free-circulating miRNA molecules from plasma and serum, which can serve as highly specific biomarkers for cancer.
The kit is currently available for research use only.
The company plans to validate the product for in-vitro diagnostic applications in the US and Europe.