The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) hosted its annual conference from April 5 to 9 in San Diego, California. Attendance for the conference was up 2% from last year, when it was held in Washington, DC, to over 18,400 attendees. The number of exhibitors rose 4% to 3,057.

On Monday afternoon, the AACR/American Society of Cancer Oncology Presidential Symposium addressed next-generation sequencing’s (NGS) use in precision medicine. The Symposium featured three presenters in a room filled to capacity. Victor Velculescu, MD, PhD, associate professor of Oncology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and CSO and cofounder of Personal Genome Diagnostics gave an overview of NGS clinical use for cancer research, including its role in identifying driver genes and in tumor-based analysis. He also discussed the potential clinical diagnostic applications for sequencing circulating-tumor DNA, such as the use of genomic rearrangements to monitor tumor progression and the detection of actionable genetic alterations in plasma.

Elizabeth Mansfield, PhD, director, Personalized Medicine Staff, at the FDA’s Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health, discussed the evolution of the FDA’s regulation of companion diagnostics, highlighting the multiple new approaches to pairing drugs with diagnostics testing. Discussing possible multiplex-testing approaches for companion diagnostics, she gave the example of a targeted-sequencing panel for an analytical validated NGS platform. Among the potential risk factors for such a product from a regulatory viewpoint are that not all analytes would be nucleic acids, the transition from currently approved tests would be complicated, different NGS platforms currently do not report results similarly, and the potential for poorly advised off-label use and cost. To make new approaches to companion diagnostics a reality, she cited the need for willing platform sponsors, FDA input, the need for labs to be able to provide comparable results (e.g., with standards, controls, etc.) and for oncologists to be able to interpret the results.

Examining the implementation of sequencing data in the clinic, William Pao, MD, PhD, professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and head of the Hematology-Oncology Division, discussed the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) Personalized Cancer Medicine Initiative. The Initiative tested 3,420 specimens between July 2010 and April 1 of this year using disease-specific panels. Results were used to generate real-time reports for clinicians and linked to the patients’ electronic medical records. The record also provided a link to the VICC-created MyCancerGenome.com website, which freely provides information on genetic mutations linked to cancer. Currently, the website covers 19 cancers and 42 genes. A panel and audience discussion focused on the variation in the interpretations of NGS results and the resulting need for large databases.

A wide range of techniques was on display in the exhibit hall, ranging from NGS to in vivo animal imaging to flow cytometry. Two new flow cytometry systems debuted at the show. Life Technologies exhibited the second generation of its Attune flow cytometer, the Attune NxT Acoustic Focusing Cytometer, available with up for four lasers and 14 colors, versus the previous two-laser system.

ACEA Biosciences featured its new NovoCyte Flow Cytometer, a compact instrument developed to make flow cytometry more accessible to individual labs. The system is modular, with up to three lasers, which can accommodate up to 13 colors and measure up to 15 parameters. Its user-friendly design includes automatic PMT adjustment, absolute cell counting without the need for bead calibration and the integration of analysis software. A three-laser system costs around $90,000.

Also launched at the show was CyVek’s first product, the CyPlex System, which it calls an automated ELISA-testing platform. End-users order eight-well prefilled disposable test microfluidic cartridges to which they add the sample (25 mL) and buffer. Each well reaction can measure up to four different analytes per sample. The system is available for a list price of $50,000. The company is initially introducing 35 validated assays.

PerkinElmer had a sizable presence at AACR. Among the products on display was the Lamina multilabel slide scanner for research pathology. Building upon technology from its acquisition of Caliper Life Sciences, the Lamina is designed for whole slides and tissue microarray scanning and utilizes brightfield, fluorescence and Autofluorescence Reduction Technology. Applications include immunotherapy research. PerkinElmer also showed the new Chemagic Preptito-D nucleic acid extraction system for 1 to 12 samples.

Another new magnetic bead–based nucleic acid sample preparation system introduced at the show was BioChain’s AnaPrep 12. The mid-throughput system has a 5 minute set-up time and 10 minute training time and features a small footprint and attached handheld scanner. The company’s barcoded reagents can be stored at room temperature and are packaged so they can be broken apart to allow for a flexible number of samples. Priced at less than $20,000, the system is designed for research and diagnostic lab use.

GenCell Biosystems’ new CLiC LP automates library preparation for NGS in a single workflow. It features a liquid handler for adding DNA, master mix, ligase and barcodes; a thermal chip for processes including nucleic acid amplification, incubation and ligation; and components for purification and selection of DNA and for library collection. The system uses Composite Liquid Cell (CLC) technology, which encapsulates reactions in oil, allowing sample volumes as low as 300 nL with complete volume recovery. CLC also ensures no contact in the liquid handling process, obviating the need for disposable labware in the preparation process. The benchtop system can be used with any protocol and can prepare up to 768 barcoded libraries in a day. It is available for about $300,000.

Beckman Coulter Life Sciences introduced the Avanti JXN-26 centrifuges, which feature a new user interface. The touchscreen-controlled system has a large display, and new MobileFuge software operates from a smart phone or tablet. Up to 16 centrifuges can be managed remotely. The interface is similar to that of Beckman’s Optima Series centrifuges. The new series replaces the Avanti J-26 S XPI. The system features capacities up to 6 L and speeds up to 26,000 rpm.

New consumable products were also introduced. Seahorse Bioscience introduced its XFe96 Spheroid Microplate for use with its XFe Extracellular Flux Analyzer. The instrument measures real-time cellular metabolism, including glycolosis, mitochondrial function and oxygen consumption and is used to study areas such as cancer, diabetes and immunology. The new microplate has wells designed to culture 3-D cellular spheroids and accommodate mixing of media around the spheroids in each well. Spheroids may be particularly insightful in studies of cancer cell metabolism, including how cells respond to drugs, which the instrument can inject into wells at four time points during an assay. To date, over 1,000 articles on research using Seahorse’s metabolic assay system have been published.

Evidencing its transformation beyond microarrays, Affymetrix’s Panomics and eBioscience units showed products for cancer research. Panomics’ ViewRNA In Situ Hybridization assays are designed for localizing and visualizing RNA in fixed tissues, cells and circulating-tumor cells. EBioscience products include the QuantiGene FlowRNA Assay, an RNA-based flow cytometry assay, for single-cell gene expression.

AACR’s 2015 annual meeting will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from April 18 to 22.