Watch the full webinar – including Q&A – here

The latest in INDICAL’s series of education webinars covered the features and benefits of INDICAL’s IndiMag 48s instrument and prefilled cartridges and included a detailed video demonstration of the technology – from unpacking the instrument right through to completion of sample extraction.

User-friendly system

The IndiMag 48s has a compact footprint, ideal for many laboratories. Its user-friendly interface and open system mean that it comes preloaded with INDICAL extraction protocols but is flexible enough for users to develop their own protocols too. Cross-contamination can also be an issue in laboratories, which is why the IndiMag 48s comes fitted with a UV sterilization lamp, so you can be sure of complete decontamination.

Perhaps the greatest benefit of the IndiMag 48s is its compatibility with modular plastics. These come in three formats: single samples, 8 samples or 24 samples. Flexible plastics help minimize waste and help labs save on costs. For example, extracting 8 samples on a 96-well system uses multiple deep-well blocks, but on the IndiMag 48s, it’s just one 8-sample cartridge.

Publications

The IndiMag 48s and prefilled cartridges have been featured in many publications, covering diverse pathogens including African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV), myxoma virus, Mycoplasma bovis, porcine rotavirus A, and Classical Swine Fever Virus (CSFV). Several of these were highlighted, including:

Expert tips

INDICAL’s experts answered some frequently encountered questions.
Will increasing my sample always improve my yield of nucleic acid? No, because the extraction system is optimized for a particular sample amount.
Adding more sample will often mean less DNA, as the chemistry is saturated and becomes less efficient.

Will increasing the volume of magnetic beads improve my yield of nucleic acid? Generally, no, again because the chemistry is optimized.

How will reducing my elution buffer effect the yield of nucleic acid? Volumes
are optimized for beads and buffer and while you may be able to decrease the
volume of elution buffer, you need to ensure that all the magnetic beads are in
contact with the buffer, so a decrease in elution volume may be counterproductive.

How will heating, mechanical, enzymatic, and chemical lysis affect my yield of nucleic acid? Having all these together is generally not beneficial, but some may be combined into the extraction process, depending on the starting sample and pathogen type. Again, less is always more when considering the extraction process. If the chemistry is good enough, you don’t need to do too much and may damage the nucleic acid.

Can I treat all sample types in the same way? The short answer is ‘no’. INDICAL’s R&D group have extensive expertise in dealing with challenging sample types and optimizing the nucleic acid extraction process. If you need support with demanding extractions, don’t hesitate to get in touch for support.

Audience Q&A

 

Can the instrument be used to extract high-molecular-weight DNA for long read sequencing? The IndiMag Pathogen Kit can be used for different genomic applications with customer-specific protocols and the IndiMag 48s has been successfully used for this application.

Is there a specific way to place the single sample block into the IndiMag 48s? Yes, there are marks, an arrow and a notch that guides how to insert the
block into the instrument correctly.

Is there a performance difference between bottled and prefilled reagents? During development of the prefilled cartridges, we carried out extensive comparisons between the manual pathogen kits and prefilled cartridges using different sample types and different pathogens. We found no significant differences between the two methods.

How complicated is it to enter your own protocols to the IndiMag 48s? It is not complicated at all. The easiest way is to fill out a text file with all the parameters and upload that to the instrument via a memory stick. You can also do it directly on the instrument.

Discover the benefits of IndiMag 48s and prefilled cartridges for yourself.

Watch the full webinar – including Q&A – here:


Classical Swine Fever (CSF) is economically one of the most important viral infectious diseases of swine. CSF is widespread in domestic pig and wild boar populations. CSF is an internationally notifiable animal disease. The causative agent, Classical Swine Fever Virus (CSFV), is a single-stranded RNA virus and a member of the genus pestivirus which belongs to the Flaviviridae family like Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus in cattle and Border Disease Virus in Sheep.

Air sampling – using AeroCollect® technology – offers new capabilities for rapid and efficient surveillance testing without compromising animal welfare. With the AeroCollect device, there is no invasive sampling involved. You simply walk around the farm, poultry or pig house holding the device. The device samples the entire flock or herd, capturing and retaining any bacteria or viruses from the air in minutes.

AeroCollect works with just three simple steps

  1. Walk the area to be sampled for 5 mins. The AeroCollect captures airborne bacteria and viruses from dust, water and cells.
  2. Send the sample to the laboratory for qPCR testing. No sample extraction is needed; the sample is flushed directly from the chamber. INDICAL reagents and buffers are validated for this step, although other reagents are compatible.
  3. Same-day qPCR results, usually within a few hours giving vets and farmers rapid, actionable results.

Early detection is enabled with AeroCollect

You can detect an outbreak as soon as the animal starts shedding the bacteria or virus, typically 1–2 weeks before conventional screening would detect it. The table
shows the pathogens currently detected with AeroCollect technology.

Pathogens detected by AeroCollect

Poultry

Salmonella spp.

Campylobacter spp.

Infectious Bronchitis Virus (IBV)

Gumboro Disease (Infectious Bursal Disease; IBD)

Adenovirus

E. coli

Marek’s Disease

Avian Reovirus

Staphylococcus spp.

Turkey Rhinotracheitis (TRT) Virus

Pasteurella spp.

Chicken Astro Virus

Avian Encephalomyelitis (AE)

Mycoplasma spp.

Avian Influenza Virus (AIV)

C. perfringens

Swine

Actinobacillus pleuropneumonia (APP)

Porcine Circovirus 2 (PCV2)

African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV)

Swine Influenza Virus

Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRSV)

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

E. coli (F4 and F18)

Mycoplasma hypopneumoniae

Validation data Future outlook for air sampling

The webinar presented validation data for Campylobacter spp., Salmonella spp., IBV, Gumboro, APP, Swine Influenza Virus. For all pathogens:

  • AeroCollect showed very good agreement when compared with the gold-standard method (boot swab analysis) and near-perfect agreement when compared to true results.
  • AeroCollect technology can detect an emerging infection 2–4 days earlier than boot swabs.
  • AeroCollect enables closer monitoring of (for example) Salmonella outbreaks in flocks, potentially saving effort and costs that may be incurred from contaminated slaughter lines, or worse, product recalls.

Future outlook for air sampling

Field studies are still ongoing in:

  • Monitoring applications for PRRSV, M. hypopneumoniae, APP and SIV
  • Monitoring and detection of PRRSV in infection studies
  • Monitoring and detection of ASFV

INDICAL and AeroCollect are also working towards defining the best-practice framework for implementation on poultry farms.

The AeroCollect device has many more potential applications in animals, including in cattle, racehorses and game birds and several new studies are planned. Utility in human applications may also follow in the future.

Watch the full webinar – including Q&A – herehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNlyP3ogI8oTo learn more about the AeroCollect device or request a quote, visit:
https://shop.indical.com/en/instruments-and-plastics/aerocollect/

African swine fever (ASF) is a notifiable, contagious viral hemorrhagic disease of swine, responsible for high mortality and serious economic losses. In this paper, researchers from the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (FLI) aimed to simplify and standardize the molecular diagnostic workflow in the lab using prefilled, ready-to-use IndiMag Pathogen Cartridges for nucleic acid extraction prior to (real-time) PCR.

The study concluded that using prefilled cartridges for DNA extraction does not reduce diagnostic sensitivity. Indeed, minimization of manual handling and increased hands-off time delivered by prefilled IndiMag Pathogen Cartridges for extraction and qPCR can reduce the risk of false-negative and -positive results, especially in high-throughput scenarios.

Read more about the scientific study

Learn more about prefilled cartridges

The outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in the Dominican Republic now covers the majority of provinces, as confirmed by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). Identification of this notifiable disease generally results in the suspension of exports of pigs and pig products, causing huge losses to a country’s swine industry. This outbreak – the first in 40 years in the Americas – has already seen the culling of over 50,000 pigs.

Concerned about potential spread to the US territory of Puerto Rico, some ~200 miles away, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), part of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) have established a protection zone and are conducting surveillance to quickly detect introductions of disease. APHIS is also actively supporting the Dominican Republic with detection, surveillance, quarantine, depopulation, and disposal.

Interested in learning more about ASF strategy and readiness from key opinion leaders? Take a look at our latest webinar where you meet our two experts – Professor Grzegorz Woźniakowski (Nicolaus Copernicus University) and Ahmed Elnagar (Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut; FLI) and get their insights into ASF outbreak strategy and readiness, together with the latest in innovative diagnostics.


African swine fever (ASF) is a notifiable, contagious viral hemorrhagic disease of swine, responsible for high mortality and serious economic losses. In the paper Swift and Reliable “Easy Lab” methods for the sensitive molecular detection of African swine fever, researchers from the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (FLI) aimed to simplify and standardize the molecular diagnostic workflow in the lab using prefilled, ready-to-use IndiMag Pathogen Cartridges for nucleic acid extraction prior to (real-time) PCR.

The study concluded that:

  1. EDTA blood and bloody materials are the sample matrices of choice for sensitive ASFV genome detection, independent of the course and phase of the disease.
  2. If optimal specimens are used for the molecular detection of ASFV, several extraction, and qPCR methods are “fit for purpose”. The selection of the ideal system for a specific lab depends on various factors (samples per day, trained personnel, technical resources, etc.).
  3. Based on the minimization of manual handling and working time, we showed that simplification and standardization of DNA extraction and qPCR methods do not result in reduced diagnostic sensitivity and actually reduces the risk of false-negative results, especially in high throughput scenarios.

At INDICAL, we share scientific insights, because improved exchange of knowledge and increased awareness are crucial in implementing efficient and coordinated ASF control strategies.

Read the full article here

Explore INDICAL’s solutions for extraction and identification of ASFV

As of August 2021, African Swine Fever (ASF) was present in more than 50 countries, causing huge economic losses to the swine industry. In 2013, the virus was first observed in Baltic countries and Poland and not only in domestic pigs, but also in the wild boar population.

In Poland, outbreaks have increased and spread from east to west since 2014, with the main drivers being non-compliance with biosecurity rules and continuous infection in wild boar.

Successful methods to combat ASF

  • Electric fences
  • So-called “white zones” – where the population of wild boar should be zero
  • Chemical repellents
  • Hunting (licensed)
  • Increased awareness through campaigns to farmers, vets, etc.

Controlling ASFV in Europe

ASF will be present in Poland – and throughout Europe – for many more years, so measures are required to reduce economic loss. A comprehensive EU-wide strategy includes regionalization and compartmentalization of outbreaks, enabling best-possible disease control, while minimizing any negative impact of ASF on pig production and export. Early diagnosis and surveillance are the key factors against ASF spread.

Watch the full webinar here

Today INDICAL is taking the first step into food safety and antimicrobial resistance segments by joining forces with Check-Points.

Check-Points is a Dutch R&D focused company that produces tests for two principal markets – food safety and human antimicrobial resistance. The main component of the business is related to “Check and Trace”, a unique product based on a microarray platform to accurately identify over 300 serotypes of Salmonella. The company, founded in 2002 with annual revenues of approximately EUR 2.3 million, also produces a number of DNA-based tests for the molecular detection of antimicrobial resistance in hospital acquired infections in humans.

Through the Salmonella test, the company principally serves producers and labs within the poultry industry as well as food safety labs. The human assays principally target in-hospital laboratories.

“The acquisition of Check-Points bolsters our poultry portfolio and direct-to-producer offering. Check-Points has developed strong momentum in its core products and has an exciting R&D pipeline, with highly relevant development expertise that can support new projects within INDICAL itself. We look forward to working with the Check-Points management team to take advantage of all these opportunities”, says Stefano Santarelli, CEO of INDICAL BIOSCIENCE.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global health and development threat that requires urgent action in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and is declared as one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity by the World Health Organization (WHO). Having Check-Points as part of the family is a great step towards INDICAL’s contribution to One Health – of the planet, animals and people.

Read the full press release here