ALEX Multiplex Allergy Test

VIDIA DIAGNOSTIKA offers the ALEX (Allergy Explorer) multiplex allergy test — one of the most comprehensive commercially available molecular allergy diagnostics — at 6,500 Kč through its immunology laboratory operated in partnership with GENNET. ALEX simultaneously measures specific IgE reactivity to 150 allergen extracts and 126 purified molecular allergen components in a single blood sample, providing a complete allergy sensitisation map that identifies both genuine allergies and cross-reactions. It is particularly valuable for patients with multiple apparent allergies who need to identify the primary sensitiser.

The ALEX (Allergy Explorer) multiplex allergy test at VIDIA DIAGNOSTIKA represents the broadest single-blood-draw allergy investigation available in the Czech private laboratory market. At 6,500 Kč, it covers 276 distinct allergen targets — 150 native allergen extracts and 126 purified molecular allergen components — in a single serum sample processed in VIDIA's immunology laboratory. Conventional specific IgE testing examines one allergen at a time (350 Kč per extract at VIDIA). Building a comprehensive allergy profile this way requires many separate tests and, at 350 Kč each, quickly becomes expensive and logistically fragmented. ALEX tests all 276 targets simultaneously from a single blood draw, costing less than 24 Kč per target — a dramatic cost-efficiency advantage for patients with complex or polysensitised presentations. Molecular component-resolved diagnosis (CRD) — the discipline that ALEX is built on — distinguishes between genuine primary sensitisation and IgE cross-reactivity. Many patients believe they are allergic to multiple unrelated allergens when they are actually monosensitised to a single primary allergen whose molecular epitopes appear in several sources. For example, a patient reacting to birch pollen, apple, hazelnuts, celery and carrots may be primarily sensitised to Bet v 1 (the major birch allergen), whose structural homologue Mal d 1 is present in apples, Cor a 1 in hazelnuts, and Api g 1 in celery. ALEX identifies Bet v 1 sensitisation directly, avoiding unnecessary food elimination and misdirected immunotherapy targets. The 150 allergen extracts cover the standard allergy universe: grass, tree and weed pollen, house dust mites, pet dander, mould spores, latex, hymenoptera venom, staple foods, nuts, seafood, and more. The 126 molecular components provide resolution at the protein-family level, distinguishing PR-10 proteins (cross-reactive, birch-related, generally causing mild oral reactions) from storage proteins (species-specific, associated with severe systemic reactions), profilins (highly cross-reactive, low clinical relevance) and lipid transfer proteins (important for systemic reactions, particularly in Southern European populations, but also present in Czech patients). The test requires a standard venous blood draw — approximately 5–8 ml of serum — with no fasting requirement. Total IgE (449/503 Kč at VIDIA) is a useful complement to ALEX if not recently checked, as very high total IgE can cause non-specific background signal on multiplex platforms. Results are processed in the GENNET/VIDIA immunology laboratory and delivered via the patient portal with a detailed allergen map. Interpretation requires an allergist or immunologist to translate the pattern of sensitisations into clinical priorities and management decisions.