Reliable measurement of multiplexed biomarker panel of RNA transcripts

de Breteuil, F-92312, Sevres Cedex, France E-mail address: rwielgosz@bipm.org It is most appropriate that the journal, Biomolecular Detecion and Quantification introduces the concepts of metrology and tandards and their importance to quantitative molecular methodlogies in ensuring their accuracy, the robustness of research esults and the development of reliable and reproducible methods or diagnosis of disease. International comparisons of measurement methods across labratories, and the establishment of calibration hierarchies, permit raceable measurement results to be obtained, ensuring compatible easurement results through both space and time. Such comarison exercises are organized by the Consultative Committee or Metrology in Chemistry and Biology (CCQM) of the Bureau nternational des Poids et Mesures (BIPM) and in particular, for iomolecular Detection and Quantification, the working Groups on ucleic, Protein and Cell analysis. The activities of these groups are n extension of the global measurement system that includes the nternational System of Units (SI), which represents an internationlly recognized system based on standards of long-term stability, nd by the use traceable measurements provides an international nfrastructure for realizing comparable measurements. Gene expression biomarker profiling can distinguish between isease states (e.g. cancer subtyping) or predict how tumours ill react to particular treatments (stratified medicine) and thereore offers considerable potential as an exploitable technology for isease diagnosis and prognosis. However, RNA measurement is hallenging and complicated by difficulties associated with the obustness and comparability of the techniques used to analyse hese molecules and the lack of commonly applied universal stanards. The international comparison CCQM-P103.1 (Gene expression iomarker profiling, coordinated by LGC), was designed to address hese issues and the equivalence of measurement results from diferent techniques at National Metrology Institutes, and follows on