· Respiratory tract infection is one of the most common diseases, accounting for 10% of hospitalized patients and several million deaths around the world annually.

· An adolescent or an adult might be infected with respiratory tract pathogens 2 to 4 times each year, while this number may double for a child.

· About 90% of acute upper respiratory tract infections and most of lower respiratory tract infections are caused by respiratory tract pathogens other than bacteria. The common pathogens include but are not limited to human respiratory syncytial virus, human adenovirus, influenza virus and mycoplasma, infections of which result in similar symptoms: fever, cough, weakness, pneumonia or non-leukocytosis.

· Timely identification of respiratory tract pathogens can guide specific treatment, reduce hospital costs, and minimize the excessive use of antibiotics.

Multiplex: 

Adaptable to detection of multiple pathogens simultaneously

Single-tube: 

Perform cDNA synthesis and multiplex PCR in one tube

Comprehensive: 

Identify 11 most common respiratory viruses, chlamydia and Mycoplasma pneumonia

Sensitive:
High sensitivity similar to qPCR

Efficient: 

Perform the whole assay within 4 hrs; Hands-on time as short as 0.5 hr; Up to 192 samples within 8 hrs 

Accurate:

1) Three controls monitor sample quality and the whole assay, reducing risk of false negatives 

2) No cross-reaction with other pathogens

3) Efficient anti-contamination system, reducing risk of false positives

Objective: 

Normalize signaling on CE platforms by standard mix; Results output by software

Compatible: 

Work well on oropharyngeal swabs and sputum; Perform PCR on common thermal cyclers and CE platforms (GeXP/CEQ or ABI3130/3500)

Economic: 

Much cheaper than qPCR (for 13 pathogens detection) and liquid chip tests