Specimen Collection

Do not use heparin tubes

Send specimens at ambient temperature. They must reach the laboratory within 48 hours.

Address them to Dr. See-Tarn Woon, Department of Virology and Immunology

5 mL EDTA Plasma (Always Required)

1 mL Paediatric Micro-EDTA Plasma (Always Required)
Turnaround Time: Between 1 week and 2 weeks
Diagnostic Use and Interpretation

T cell receptor excision circles (TREC) are the by-products during T cell receptor gene rearrangement in maturing T cells. These excision circles do not multiply during cell division and are subsequently diluted during mitosis. TREC quantification could be used as a measure of thymic output to evaluate patients with immunodeficiency. The assay could also be useful in monitoring thymic output in patients following transplantation. The amount of TREC also depends on the naive T cells and therefore the TREC results require careful interpretation. The amount of TREC is quantified by real-time PCR.

Contact Information

For further information contact the laboratory (09) 307 4949 ext 22000 or:

Associate Professor Rohan Ameratunga , Immunopathologist: Locator 93-5724

Or the LabPLUS Immunology Team

Last updated at 14:19:33 08/07/2020