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6 Questions to Ask Before Choosing an Allergy Testing Platform

1. What percentage of your IgE allergy testing panel consists of molecular allergens rather than allergen extracts?

The ALEX2 IgE allergen panel consists of 117 extracts and 183 molecular allergens. This represents the largest panel of molecular allergens on the market, including 50+ unique molecular allergens. Because molecular allergens can be precisely replicated with very high purity, they typically offer better and more reproducible sensitivity. Testing well-defined molecular components of allergens can aid in the differentiation between an allergy that is specific to one allergen and one that is non-specific towards a molecular component found in multiple members of an allergen family.

2. Is there a potential for false positives due to non-specific IgE antibodies to cross-reactive carbohydrate determinants (CCDs)?

The ALEX2 kit includes 141 recombinant molecular allergens which do not contain CCDs and incorporates a powerful blocking agent to prevent binding of anti-CCD IgE antibodies to CCDs present on some allergen extracts.

3. What sample volume is required to perform large screens?

The ALEX2 kit enables screening for specific IgE antibodies to 300 different allergens with just 100 μl (manual processing) to 200 μl (automated processing) of serum, heparin plasma, or sodium citrate plasma.

4. What kind of instrumentation is required to perform the test?

ALEX2 kits are available for both the MAX 45k Automated Batch Analyzer for walk-away testing of up to 50 samples per run for the full 300-allergen ALEX2 panel and the IMAGEXPLORER System for manual analysis of ALEX2 cartridges.

5. Can I limit testing or reporting to a portion of the allergen panel?

The cloud-based RAPTOR analysis software allows for full flexibility in result selection. Choose from pre-defined software panels based on allergen groups or generate your own allergen software panel for export to a data-processing system or direct reporting with customizable report templates.

6. What kind of assistance is offered for interpretation of the allergy test results?

RAVEN interpretation software offers integrated guidance for every positive test result. The software includes specific information on allergen sources and symptoms, molecular allergens and cross-reactive allergen families. It is specifically designed to reduce the need for allergen database searches.
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6 Questions to Ask Before Choosing an Allergy Testing Platform Download