Multiplexed Diagnostic; Helps Measure Multiple Analytes in a Single Experiment

Multiplex diagnostics are used for the analysis of biological samples, capable of carrying out the screening process in one go. Multiplexing is the ability to identify variety of conditions in a single molecular diagnostic test, as opposed to the operation of discrete individual procedures. Thus, multiplexed diagnostics are observing extensive adoption across diagnostic laboratories, medical professionals, and clinical researchers. Moreover, more recently, multiplexed point-of-care has gained increasing importance for clinical diagnostics, with emerging applications in various medical settings (such as in doctors’ offices or directly at home).

Multiplexed diagnostic assays are used to detect and diagnose different infections or diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, allergies, and autoimmune diseases. Assays performed in multiplex diagnostics include next-generation sequencing assays, low density multiplexed assays, and medium density multiplexed assays, and high density multiplexed assays. Early diagnosis help reduce the risk of chronic diseases or infections and factors associated with them and helps in appropriate treatment and management. Thus, there is an increasing demand for early diagnosis, owing to the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases worldwide.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), chronic diseases, such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease, are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States; around 659,000 Americans die from heart disease each year, that's 1 in every 4 deaths. This in turn is expected to increase the demand for multiplex diagnostics in the U.S. Moreover, these assays offer various advantages, such as high accuracy and time efficiency, which help analyze mutations and defects in any functional biomolecules such as RNA, DNA, and protein. Multiplexed point-of-care testing is designed to provide diagnostic tests at or near the time and place that the patient is admitted.

Diagnostic tests are used to confirm or rule out the conditions and diseases. Before creating a treatment plan, doctor needs critical information for a correct diagnosis, which a diagnostic test can provide. In the biological sciences, a multiplex assay is a type of immunoassay that uses magnetic beads to simultaneously measure multiple analytes in a single experiment.