Mini-symposium on digital PCR

Program

Full program

09:30 - 10:00	Welcome coffee
10:00 - 11:55	Morning session
	10:00 - 10:10	Jo Vandesompele (Ghent University, CRIG) Welcome
	10:10 - 10:55	Jim Huggett (LGC and University of Surrey, UK) Unprecedented Reproducibility and Accuracy, arguably dPCRs main offering to Diagnostic testing Digital PCR enables absolute counting of DNA molecules using limiting dilution across large numbers of small reactions (termed partitions). dPCR has been heralded as allowing precise quantification, high sensitivity rare variant and haplotype analysis not achievable with qPCR. But dPCR has another more subtle strength; its absolute counting method is unique in molecular biology and has the potential to facilitate highly reproducible measurement without the need for a calibration curve. Furthermore, if dPCR is able to accurately count the molecules present it has the potential to be an SI traceable approach: potentially the first higher order reference method available in molecular biology. This presentation will discuss dPCR accuracy, present some of the work that has been performed in investigating this idea and outline what this could mean for advancing the field molecular diagnostics.
	10:55 - 11:25	Isaac Garcia-Murillas (Institute Cancer Research, ICR) Multicolour Digital PCR for ctDNA detection in breast cancer
	11:25 - 11:55	Koen De Gelas (Bio-Rad) Clinical Utility of Droplet ddPCR, moving to diagnostics
11:55 - 13:00	Break for light lunch and exhibitors
13:00 - 14:00	Afternoon session part 1
	13:00 - 13:15	Matthijs Vynck (Ghent University) Digital PCR data analyis: Quality control, sources of variation and sample size calculations
	13:15 - 13:30	Olivier Thas (Ghent University, CRIG) Digital PCR data analyis: A flexible framework for absolute and relative quantification and CNV
	13:30 - 13:45	Wim Trypsteen (Ghent University) Digital PCR in HIV reservoir quantification: From research to diagnostic platform
	13:45 - 14:00	Antoon Lievens (European Commission Joint Research Center, Geel, Belgium) From real time PCR to digital PCR: method transfer guidelines and performance parameters
14:00 - 14:30	Coffee break
14:30 - 15:30	Afternoon session part 2
	14:30 - 14:50	Anneleen Beckers (Biogazelle) Mutation analysis in cell-free DNA from cancer patients
	14:50 - 15:05	Sarah Buelens (Ghent University Hospital, CRIG) Prognostic and therapeutic implications of circulation androgen receptor gene copy number in prostate cancer patients using droplet digital PCR
	15:05 - 15:20	Ward De Spiegelaere (Ghent University, CRIG) Considerations for absolute DNA and RNA quantification by dPCR, lessons learned from HIV reservoir quantification
	15:20 - 15:30	Eva De Smedt (Ghent University, CRIG) Gene copy number analysis in genetically engineered mice: is ZEB1 (in)dispensable in breast cancer initiation?
15:30 - 15:45	Closing remarks
15:45 - 16:15	Send home coffee and last visits booths

Keynote speaker

dr. J. Huggett, LGC and University of Surrey, UK

Dr Huggett read genetics in Liverpool University followed by a PhD in Cardiff University where he studied the transcription in bone disease. Particularly interested in the application of advanced molecular methods to clinical scenarios he moved to UCL in 2002 to take up a senior research fellow position with Professor Alimuddin Zumla. Here he investigated diagnostic approaches to infectious diseases in developing world settings before moving to LGC in 2009, while retaining an honorary lectureship at UCL, which he still holds. At LGC, which is the UK’s designated national measurement institute role for chemical and bio-analytical measurement, he has led a large number of molecular diagnostics, genomics and nucleic acid research projects. This work focuses on high  accuracy measurement as well as  strengthening the traceability of measurements that underpin  legislation, regulation and standardisation. In 2016 Dr Huggett joined the University of Surrey as a Senior Lecturer and holds a joint appointment with LGC.