Embracing technology with automation in biochemistry

The term biochemistry was coined in 1903 by a German chemist named Carl Alexander Neuberg, who was a driving force for establishing biochemistry as an independent discipline. During World War I, Neuberg used his scientific expertise to support the war effort. He found a chemical procedure for an isolated glycerol substitute, which was produced on an industrial level for brake fluids and for the production of explosives.

Biochemists, by virtue of their training, are translational researchers, capable of developing, evaluating, and validating biochemical and genetic assays for clinical use. They develop skills that are essential for new biomarker assays, reagent kits, and companion diagnostics.

Biochemistry is the largest subdiscipline of laboratory medicine, which is a multidisciplinary medical and scientific specialty with several interacting subdisciplines, such as clinical chemistry, immunology, endocrinology, therapeutic drug monitoring, and others.

Biochemists have embraced technology over the years and these include spectrophotometry, atomic absorption, flame-emission photometry, nephelometry, electrochemical and optical sensor technologies, electrophoresis, chromatography, and mass spectrometry. Point-of-care testing, lab-on-a-chip, nanotechnologies are disruptive innovations with many challenges, opportunities, and make the profession vibrant, interesting, and ever-evolving.

Biochemistry has evolved greatly over time, driven by numerous factors – not the least being technological advancements in the world at large. Computers, microprocessors, and robotics paved the way for automation and cloud-based technology. With this, laboratories have transformed into bustling hubs, featuring large integrated platforms, producing thousands of tests per hour with sophisticated information-management systems, but that does not necessarily lead to better patient management and outcomes alone. Results of big data translate high-quality measurements data into clinically relevant information, integrated with clinical history and symptoms, and an understanding of pathophysiology becomes knowledge. Knowledge, in the context of experience and judgement of the clinician, is converted to wisdom for improved patient outcome.

In today’s healthcare environment, laboratories are responsible for adding value in a way that positively impacts patient outcomes and supports organizational goals through cost-effective care. Central to this is ensuring laboratory efficiency. One of the most significant contributors to efficiency over the last several decades has been the development of lab automation.

While robots may not be coming for the biochemist’s job just yet, it may be a different matter once automation is coupled with advanced AI. In maybe 10–20 years’ time, one could see that there will be models with AI, where specialists basically send a request to a web server, that web server runs the chemistry that they want it to look at, and they get a result back. And it is all done in a fully automated way in a few hours.

With the emergence of the Covid-19 virus, manufacturers have quickly adapted their analyzers to keep pace with the increased testing demands, and they have adopted new approaches that can accommodate changing test requirements.

Major players in the market are focused on launching diagnostic tests for Covid-19, which include critical tests such as CRP, D-Dimer, and ferritin. Major players operating in the global biochemistry analyzers market include Roche Diagnostic, Siemens Healthcare, Beckman Coulter, Abbott Diagnostics, Ortho Clinical Diagnostics, Mindray, Bio-Medical Electronics Co. Ltd., Randox Laboratories, TransAsia Biomedical, Diosorin, Nova Biomedical, etc.

The practice of biochemists has evolved over the past half a century, and there are even more challenges on the horizon that will expand and change its scope and role and enhance its diversity. Whatever the next few years hold, one thing is certain – innovation still has, and always will have, a key role in the lab.