New Bartonella Digital ePCR Test

interesting

so it's basically the same as their original culture the qPCR process
except that now the cultured sample is emulsified into 20,000 droplets and the PCR multiplication of DNA is done in each individual droplet - and the results are sampled in each individual droplet.

the advantages are mainly statistical - ie you can average the result across 20,000 droplets to get higher resolution and precision.

the key thing they were targeting is sensitivity ( that's generally where the DD qPCR has its advantages) and they now claim a 47% sensitivity - which is higher than previous tests - including their previous Galaxy culture then qPCR process

"Published data suggests that Bartonella Digital ePCR™ is up to 10 times more sensitive than our original Bartonella ePCR™ test panel (BAPGM enrichment plus PCR). In this study supported by funding from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute at the National Institutes of Health, Galaxy scientists reported that ddPCR sensitivity at 47% was significantly better than qPCR at 5.4% on 112 whole blood and BAPGM blood culture samples from patients with chronic symptoms and high levels of animal and vector contact. Consistent with prior research"

but this is still a low number - so a relatively small step towards the 90% plus sensitivity we need

price ( $650) seems a little prohibitive also - especially as the process itself should be cheap ....

info here on the dd qPCR technology
https://www.bio-rad.com/en-uk/applications-technologies/droplet-digital-pcr-ddpcr-technology

at least they have published a paper in a peer-reviewed journal - which is more than most test houses do - but it has to be noted that all of the authors are connected to/employed by galaxy.

Quin, can you say a bit more about how Bartonella affects bilirubin, B6, protein, and ammonia levels? (As in, does it make each one high or low?)

I have had the first three of those tested many times and they're always very normal, including when my LLMDs have told me my symptoms are all from Bartonella, my Bartonella has been "reactivated," etc. Do you think that means the doctors were incorrect?

High VEGF can indicate Bartonella, too, which I did have.

Bartonella invades red blood cells, metabolizes protein, and produces ammonia. This process requires lots of vitamin B6, which it seems to produce. This destroys the red blood cells, which break down, forming bilirubin.

When my bartonella would flare up or I would herx, blood tests consistently showed high bilirubin and high vitamin B6. Less consistently, the CMP would show low globulin and sometimes low total protein. I could often smell the ammonia, but when I tried to get this tested, the lab reported no results because the specimen was not properly frozen, so I don't know how bad the ammonia actually was.