Will microbiologists soon be testing a patient’s cellphone for clinical diagnostic purposes? Researchers at the University of Oregon recently conducted a study and determined that cellphones have a similar microbiome to the skin of the person who owns the device. The study determined that three microbial types could be found on the surfaces of cellphones and the fingers of the phones’ owners. These were Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, and Corynebacterium. Another finding in the study was that each participant’s microbiome had more in common with their personal phone than another participant. Researchers said their findings were consistent with other studies. In their abstract, the researchers wrote “Our results suggest that mobile phones hold untapped potential as personal microbiome sensors.”
MAYO INTRODUCES HOTSPOT PANEL INVOLVING 50 GENES
Next-generation gene sequencing continues to make new inroads in clinical diagnostics. Last month, Mayo Clinic announced “CANCP”, a test designed to help tailor chemotherapy for cancer patients. It looks at 50 different genes in solid tumors and is designed as a “hotspot” assay because it only looks at specific regions of each gene to identify tumor mutations that influence the response to chemotherapy and are clinically-actionable alterations. The testing is being conducted at the Next-Generation Sequencing Lab of the Mayo Clinic Department of Medicine and Pathology.
TRANSITIONS
With the closing of the sale of Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics by Johnson & Johnson to the Carlyle Group approaching, several executive appointments have been announced by Carlyle.
- This winter, Carlyle disclosed that, once the sale was completed, the CEO of Ortho- Clinical Diagnostics (OCD) would be Dr. Martin Madous. Formerly, he was Chair, President, and CEO of Millipore Corp., and has held executive positions with Roche Diagnostics and Beohringer Manheim Corporation.
- On June 18, Carlyle stated that, post-closing, the new Chief Operating Officer for OCD will be Robert Yates. He has worked at Merck Millipore, Millipore Corporation, and Roche Diagnostics.
Dark Daily Update
Have you caught the latest e-briefings from DARK Daily? If so, then you’d know about…
…how Maricopa Integrated Health System, a safety-net hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, cut its chargemaster prices by 50% for common procedures to help consumers and saw increased admissions and revenue as a consequence.
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