Diagnostics

Molecular diagnostics is a dynamic and transformative area of diagnostics, leading to insights in research and treatment in many disease states that are revolutionizing health care. Molecular diagnostics detect and measure the presence of genetic material or proteins associated with a specific health condition or disease, helping to uncover the underlying mechanisms of disease and enabling clinicians to tailor care at an individual level – facilitating the practice of “personalized medicine.” Sentier over the years has placed itself very well as services, devices and consumables provider to all big diagnostics chains and high-end hospital laboratories in India and S E Asia. Our area of strengths lies in:

Histopathology

Specifically, in clinical medicine, histopathology refers to the examination of a biopsy or surgical specimen by a pathologist, after the specimen has been processed and histological sections have been placed onto glass slides.

Immunohistochemistry (IHC) test

In IHC tests a diagnostic antibody binds to a certain target protein in cells or on cell membranes on the tissue slides. If the target protein is present in or on the tumour cells, the diagnostic antibody is able to recognize and bind to this protein (key-lock-principle). This biophysical interaction can be visualized by the colour reaction on the tissue slide and assessed under the microscope. This is an important factor to help determine the type of drug therapy the patient will respond to.

Immunofluorescence (IF)

Immunofluorescence is a microscope-based technique used clinically to diagnose certain cutaneous diseases by detection of autoantibody-antigen complexes.

Techniques including direct immunofluorescence, indirect immunofluorescence, and salt-split skin are utilized depending on the clinical scenario.
Direct immunofluorescence is performed on patients’ skin using fluorophore-labeled antibodies that directly bind to the pathogenic autoantibody-antigen complexes in the skin.
Indirect immunofluorescence techniques are used in dermatology primarily to detect circulating pathogenic autoantibodies.

Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH)

It is a molecular cytogenetic technique that uses fluorescent probes that bind to only those parts of the chromosome with a high degree of sequence complementarity. It was developed by biomedical researchers in the early 1980s[1] and is used to detect and localize the presence or absence of specific DNA sequences on chromosomes. Fluorescence microscopy can be used to find out where the fluorescent probe is bound to the chromosomes. FISH is often used for finding specific features in DNA for use in genetic counseling, medicine, and species identification.[2] FISH can also be used to detect and localize specific RNA targets (mRNA, lncRNA, and miRNA) in cells, circulating tumour cells, and tissue samples. In this context, it can help define the spatial-temporal patterns of gene expression within cells and tissues. FISH is used as a confirmatory test for major cancer drugs like Herceptin and other new generation targeted therapies