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ITHACA, N.Y.

Rheonix, Inc., a developer of fully automated molecular testing solutions, recently spoke at Beijing University of Chemical Technology, School of Information and Technology. Dr. Zongyuan Chen, senior research engineer at Rheonix, lectured on the in vitro diagnostics (IVD) market to an audience of 70 graduate students and faculty members and provided an in-depth look at Rheonix’s breakthrough platform, the EncompassMDx^TM. According to IVD Technology magazine, the U.S. IVD market is predicted to exceed $9.5 billion by 2017. China’s IVD market is currently more than $4.5 billion and doubles every three years. Forecasts suggest that it will become the world’s largest IVD market within the next 10 to 15 years.

The EncompassMDx is a platform with unmatched versatility and affordability that performs fully automated, complex molecular assays in an easy-to-use and economical format on the Rheonix CARD^®. The CARD is a cartridge the size of a smartphone that can run several biological samples through a fully integrated molecular analysis with no user intervention—it automatically manipulates the network of microfluidic pumps, valves and channels. The EncompassMDx can dramatically decrease the cost of testing, while increasing user efficiency and accuracy. The product’s automation, capability for high throughput and high complexity, and unique sample-to-result system will allow the platform to solve workflow inefficiencies within the diagnostic segment of the health care industry. Currently, molecular diagnostics tests cost hundreds of dollars per test; the Rheonix platform can reduce those costs to less than $5.00 per test, including instrument, reagents, consumables and service.

At the lecture, Chen demonstrated the platform’s application capabilities, including HPV/HIV testing, food safety testing and environmental monitoring. He said, “The platform can also be used for next-generation sequencing library preparation. It possesses the capability to deparaffinize a sample, extract the DNA and purify it—it can actually extract more DNA and better-quality DNA than other technologies in the market. Rheonix has many exciting capabilities that can bring a lot of benefit to worldwide markets such as China, which is one of the largest developing markets for medical devices and technology.” With over 250 patents and led by a team of experts, Rheonix is poised to disrupt the worldwide molecular diagnostics industry and fill a gap in the clinical market. The system is currently available for research use only (RUO) applications and the company expects to receive U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance for commercial use in 2015.

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