New liquid stable homocysteine kit from Randox

The new liquid stable homocysteine kit from Randox provides a convenient and accurate method for the determination of homocysteine in human serum and plasma. Homocysteine is a potential indicator of a number of disease markers and should therefore be an integral part of a laboratory’s testing menu.

Homocysteine is a sulphur-containing amino acid which is produced by the demethylation of methionine. Homocysteine should be converted by vitamins B6, B12 and folic acid into useful substances. However, if the body is suffering from a lack of these nutrients, the process of homocysteine conversion is affected and levels rise.

Elevated levels of homocysteine (Hyperhomocysteinemia) are considered to be a risk factor for a number of health problems including CVD, stroke, dementia, complicated pregnancy and osteoporosis.

Although the vast majority of tests will be concerned with detecting high levels of homocysteine, it is also important to note that low levels of this analyte can also prove to be detrimental. Homocysteine is a necessary component for the production of protein and tissue within the body, therefore levels should not be lower than 5µmol/L.

The Randox test can aid in the diagnosis of both elevated and depleted levels of homocysteine and the diverse range of potential health problems associated with these.

The Randox homocysteine assay offers a range of beneficial features including:

• Liquid, ready to use reagents requiring no preparation for ease of use and the elimination of reconstitution errors
• Standards provided within the kit for optimal user convenience
• Excellent on-board stability of 28 days, minimising reagent waste
• Wide measuring range of 1.74µmol/L – 47.9µmol/L, allowing both normal and abnormal values to be accurately measured
• Limited interference from Bilirubin, Haemoglobin, Intralipids and Triglycerides, enabling optimum performance and the generation of precise, reliable results
• Excellent correlation co-efficient of 0.98 was obtained against another commercially available kit
• Protocols available for a range of analysers

For more information please visit www.randox.com