General Robert Thomas October 8, 2024

The Polaris Dawn mission is using the same tips as used in our P88 DIY

Precision Point Diagnostics DIY P88 Dietary Antigen Test is a user-friendly version of our benchmark P88 serum DAT. It allows patients access to the same comprehensive test that measures food allergies and sensitivities to 88 representative foods through four different assessments. We measure IgE to determine allergies, IgG for sensitivities, IgG4 for food tolerance, and C3d(complement) to predict hyperreactivity to individual foods. The difference between our standard P88 and the P88 DIY is in the collection method. Rather than serum, the P88 DIY uses dried blood collected by a state-of-the-art sampling device.

This collection device uses micro-needles to almost painlessly collect small amounts of blood into specially designed receptacles that keep it self-contained and stable. This ease of collection means no phlebotomist is necessary so the patient can be drop-shipped a kit and collect the sample themselves. Because dried blood is used, the sample remains stable for much longer than with serum, making the P88 DIY ideal for international clients, or for those collecting just before the weekend. In fact, these same collection devices are being used on the Polaris Dawn human spaceflight missions to allow astronauts to easily collect blood samples in zero gravity. The blood samples collected in space will “explore how pharmaceuticals behave in space, where the unique environment of microgravity could alter drug efficacy, dosage requirements, or side effects.” 

Polaris Dawn is the first of the Polaris Program’s three human spaceflight missions. SpaceX is targeting no earlier than March 2023 for Falcon 9’s launch of the Dragon spacecraft and the Polaris Dawn crew from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Polaris Dawn endeavors to reach the highest Earth orbit ever flown, attempt the first-ever commercial spacewalk, conduct extensive research to further our understanding of human health on Earth and during future long-duration space flights, and test Starlink’s laser-based communications in space. For more information, visit polarisprogram.com/dawn/
The fact that astronauts will be able to self-collect blood samples that will be stable until they return from orbit is revolutionary. These same micro-sampling devices are included in our P88 DIY DAT, a revolutionary test in its own right. Not only can the sample be collected directly by the patient, but the test itself examines four separate immunological responses to each of the 88 foods, all presented in a comprehensive report that analyzes the interactions between IgE, IgG, IgG4, and C3d responses specific to each patient, and offers a clear explanation of this process as well as a personalized, targeted elimination diet. A full guide to interpreting the results of the P88 can be found here to help answer any questions you might have. In a clinical setting, the serum version of the P88 is an efficient way to test for food allergies and sensitivities. International clients, those clinics without a phlebotomist, or those who prefer to drop ship a test kit should consider the P88 DIY.

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