case study: sequence-based hla typing - how i stopped worrying and started loving sequencing
DESCRIPTION
Wake Forest HLA Lab presents the issues and challenges that provoked thoughts of changing from SSP to SBT (Sequence-based typing), reveals lessons learned during implementation and shares their personal experience of working with Life Technologies during the installation of their 3500 XL Genetic Analyzer. Visit the Life Technologies website to learn more about HLA Typing. http://owl.li/eedmiTRANSCRIPT
Sequence-based HLA Typing -or-
How I stopped worrying and started loving sequencing
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Overview
• Why we felt it was time for SBT
• How we evaluated SBT
• Our experiences with Life Technologies
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Lab Background
• Wake Forest HLA Lab opened for business in
early 1970’s
• Went to Molecular Typing for Class II in 1997
• By 1999 doing all typings (Class I & II) by
molecular methods
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Programs Supported
• Solid Organ Program:
• Renal transplant Program
• Living Related/Unrelated transplants
• Deceased Donor transplants
• Pancreas transplant program
• Cardiac transplant program
• Disease Association & Pharmacogenomics
testing
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Programs Supported
• 2 Bone Marrow Transplant Programs:
• Wake Forest /Baptist Medical Center
• An adult living related transplant program
• An adult un-related living transplant program
• Carolinas Medical Center
• A pediatric living related transplant program
• A pediatric living un-related transplant program
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Annual Throughput – 2011
• 2489 typings done by 6 techs (does not include antibody screening tests)
• 255 hi resolution typings by SSP (bone marrow patients & donors)
• 1505 low resolution typings by SSO (kidney, kidney/pancreas, pancreas, cardiac patients)
• 138 low resolution imported deceased donor typings by SSO
• 66 low resolution local deceased donor typings by SSP (after hours testing)
• 236 low resolution non-transplant clinical typings by SSO
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Technologies Currently Implemented
• SSO (Sequence Specific Oligonucleotide)
typing for low resolution
• Solid organ & disease association patients
• SSP (Sequence Specific Primers) typing for low
– hi resolution } BEING PHASED OUT
• Some renal patients/donors
• Some disease association patients
• Bone marrow patients/some donors
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Technologies Currently Implemented
• Real-time PCR for low resolution typing
• Deceased donor typing and as needed for
backup situations
• SBT (Sequence Bases Typing) for hi resolution
• All bone marrow patients
• All NMDP donors (including donors from
other registries)
• Potentially matched living related donors
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Issues & Challenges that
Provoked Thoughts of Changing
SSP was becoming grossly inadequate
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
“SSP is a flawed
system to begin with
because of the need to
change kits in keeping
with changes in
numbers of alleles.”
Dr. Michael Gautreaux
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Issues and Challenges
• Running Gels
• Ethidium bromide Biohazardous &
• Agarose Expensive Disposal
• Dropouts = Repeats
• Power Source = Shock Hazard
• Technical Issues
• Missing 1 well can mean costly repeats
• TIME!!!!!!
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Issues and Challenges
• Price per test **
• SSP +/- $1600 for Class I & II
• SBT +/- $1000 for Class I & II
**what’s charged to the patient not our actual cost
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Number of alleles keeps increasing
• Number of alleles
keeps increasing
• 2000: 750 Class I
525 Class II
• 2005: 1200 Class I
750 Class II
• 2011: 5400 Class I
1600 Class II
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Evaluation Criteria and Results
Our List of “Must Haves”
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Evaluation Criteria
• Something that didn’t take up the whole lab
• Something easy to maintain
• Something user-friendly
• Something that was less labor intensive
• Something allowing less materials to be used
• Something offering good customer support
• Something with proven reliability
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: Small Footprint
3500 XL Genetic Analyzer
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: Easy to Maintain Instrument
• The 3500 XL “Dashboard” makes it almost idiot proof
• Tells you what needs to be done and when
• WIZARDS give you a guided step-by-step of how to do things
• Tells you how long (in days and samples) you have left on your reagents
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: User Friendly Software
• uTYPE® is very straightforward analysis software (seems too easy to be true---no seriously)
• uTYPE® even suggests how to resolve any ambiguities, most often listing several Z primers to choose from (making it nice that you don’t have to have all those Z primers in house)
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: Less Labor Intensive • Cut time for 6 typings
• 2+ full days using SSP
• 1 day + couple hours using SBT
• Increasing productivity
• Updating the Library
• 1 – 2 days to update SSP worksheets and
software
• Minutes to do SBT software on 6 computers
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: Less Resources/ Materials Used
• Cut tech time for hi resolution typing drastically
• Hands on SSP (for 1 sample): 2 hours
• Hands on SBT (for 1 sample): 1.25 hours
• Drastically decreased volume of DNA
• Cutting costs all throughout the lab
• Cut out 90% agarose consumption
• Cut out 90% ethidium bromide consumption
• Nice having the ability to stretch your reagents
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: Good Customer Support
Just doesn’t get any better than “our” Keith & Melissa
Keith Kurutz Field Application Specialist
Melissa Bowman SE Account Manager
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: Proven Reliability • As for Life Technologies:
• Confident in the company:
• With 10,000+ employees
• Servicing 160+ countries
• Supporting 50,000+ products
• Confident in support staff
• In person, on-site
• Telephone
• Online
• Always keeping up with the latest technology
“We are a science company.”
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Results: Proven Reliability
• As for their products:
• Been a longstanding customer because
good products
• If an issue is raised, it’s addressed (no ifs
ands or buts)
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Implementation Process &
Lessons Learned …..and still Learning
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
SBT Implementation Timeline
Mid-August 2011
•Intensive week-long training
September 2011
•Validation packet started and submitted
October, 1 2011
•Put into routine use--started with NMDP donors
Late December 2011
•Trained first tech
Late January 2012
•Added patients to routine testing
Late March 2012
•Trained final tech
Timeline from first training to implementation into routine clinical use:
Less than 60 days
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Lessons Learned
• Intensive training process
• Good Technique is CRITICAL
• Lots of pipetting
• Reliable/well maintained equipment is a must
• Must be the calm in the midst of a storm
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Working with Life Technologies
MOST AMAZING CUSTOMER SUPPORT!!!!!
• Willing to work with you in order to do
what’s best for your lab
• Still learning little tricks and techniques
Front Loading
Allele Comparator
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Front Loading
1. Ambiguity Solver
2. Alleles in Question &
Exons
3. All of the Various Possible
Combinations
4. Z- Primers to Resolve
Ambiguities
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Allele Comparator
1. Allele Comparator
2. Alleles in Question 3. Differences
shown in RED
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
SPECIAL Thanks To Some SPECIAL People:
Sharlie Brown, CHS
Dr. Michael Gautreaux
Patti Shew
Andy Schroll, CHT
Joanna Fulcher
David Kiger, CHS Tabitha Peake, CHT
Kimberly Beane, CHT
Jennie Stewart, CHS
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Wake Forest/HLA Immunogenetics Staff