8 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 178 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. How do you ensure the accuracy and reproducibility of allergen extracts?
Each new batch of allergen extract produced at MADx is run on a gel that is compared to gels for previous lots to ensure the presence of important allergenic molecular components at expected quantities and screen for potential contaminants.
4. 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 300 μl (automated processing) of serum, heparin plasma, or sodium citrate plasma. With the food intolerance panel, specific IgG anitbodies to 286 food antigens can be detected with only 12 μl of additional sample.
5. What kind of instrumentation is required to perform the test?
ALEX2 kits are available for the MAX 9k and MAX 45k Automated Batch Analyzers for walk-away testing of 10 to 50 samples per run for the full 295-allergen ALEX2 panel and the IMAGEXPLORER System for manual analysis of ALEX2 cartridges.
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. Do you offer IgE antibody controls?
The Quality Xplorer ALEX2 sIgE Allergy Control includes eight single-use vials containing recombinant IgE antibodies. Each vial contains a mixture of monoclonal IgE antibodies that react with defined allergens on the ALEX² Allergy Xplorer arrays. As an accessory, the Quality Xplorer ensures satisfactory performance of the ALEX² assay procedure and proper function of automated and manual systems over time. The Control is compatible with both 50-test (87-02-5001-02) and 20-test (87-02-2001-02) ALEX2 Allergy Xplorer kits.
