CDI Labs Collaborates on Discovery of New Biomarkers for Zika Infection

Newly published research in Molecular & Cellular Proteomics* describes a biomarker panel based on patient IgM antibodies that can differentiate between Zika and Dengue virus infection for a prolonged period after initial exposure. CDI's expertise in protein microarrays was instrumental in the development of this assay.

Zika virus (ZIKV) and dengue virus (DENV) are closely related flaviviruses that cause widespread, acute febrile illnesses. Being able to differentiate between ZIKV and DENV over a longer period of time is critical because ZIKV is known to cause of microcephaly and severe brain abnormalities in utero and has been linked to other birth defects while DENV has not. The current approved RT-PCR tests can only detect ZIKV infection specifically within seven days from the onset of any symptom. As the infection progresses, clinicians or diagnosticians must rely on IgM-based ELISA assays which cannot reliably distinguish ZIKV infection from DENV infection. Therefore, development of a serological biomarker(s) that can detect and discriminate between the two infections is very important.

The participants in this study included labs from Johns Hopkins (Drs. Heng Zhu and Jiang Qian), UPenn, Florida State, along with a great deal of work from the labs of Drs. Jorge L. Muñoz-Jordan and Freddy A. Medina at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dengue Branch

"CDI is glad it could help on this study. Being based in Puerto Rico, the Zika problem is a personal one for us," said Scott Paschke, CDI Vice President. "Working on this important problem alongside these top scientists was indeed a pleasure and we hope it leads to large scale adoption of utilizing this panel for accurate diagnosis of Zika, as well as development of additional tests and treatments."

*Guang Song, Hee-Sool Rho, Jianbo Pan, Pedro Ramos, Ki-Jun Yoon, Freddy A. Medina, Emily M. Lee, Daniel Eichinger, Guo-li Ming, Jorge L. Muñoz-Jordan, Hengli Tang, Ignacio Pino, Hongjun Song, Jiang Qian, Heng Zhu (November 2017) Multiplexed biomarker panels discriminate Zika and Dengue virus infection in humans. Mol Cell Proteomics mcp.RA117.000310. First published November 15, 2017, doi: 10.1074/mcp.RA117.000310.

About CDI - A privately-owned biotechnology corporation, CDI Labs focuses on protein/antibody microarray design, production, and custom assay services. CDI's flagship - HuProt™ - is the most comprehensive human proteome microarray in the industry, allowing thousands of protein interactions to be profiled in parallel. HuProt enables R&D of future therapeutic and diagnostic tools to proceed more rapidly and cost-effectively. The HuProt™ arrays are available for purchase by labs with in-house microarray scanning capability. Alternatively, CDI's Discovery Services division offers contract assay design, research, bioinformatics and custom-configured microarray production on a per-project basis. CDI's Fast-MAb^® hybridoma development service addresses the urgent need for monoclonal antibodies with unprecedented specificity for research, diagnostic or therapeutic targets. Fast-MAb^® antibodies are evaluated for specificity on HuProt arrays. The Company exports products worldwide and is expanding its clientele base and academic and industrial collaborations.

Register as Visitor to CPhI China 2018!