Rapid and sensitive HBsAg immunoassay based on fluorescent nanoparticle labels and time-resolved detection

Europium nanoparticle-based simple to perform dry-reagent immunoassay for the detection of hepatitis B surface antigen

Hepatitis B infection, caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV), presents a huge global health burden. Serological diagnosis of HBV mainly relies on the detection of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). Although there are high sensitivity commercial HBsAg enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) available, many low-resource laboratories lacking trained technicians continue to use rapid point-of-care assays with low sensitivities for HBsAg detection, due to their simplicity to operate. We developed a time-resolved fluorometric dry-reagent HBsAg immunoassay which meets the detection limit of high sensitivity EIAs but is simple to operate. To develop the assay, anti-HBsAg monoclonal antibody coated on europium nanoparticles was dried atop of biotinylated anti-HBsAg polyclonal antibody immobilized on streptavidin-coated microtiter wells. To test a sample in dry-reagent assay, serum sample and assay buffer were added to the wells, incubated, washed and europium signals were measured. The assay showed a detection limit of 0.25 ng/ml using HBsAg spiked in serum sample. When evaluated with 24 HBV positive and 37 negative serum samples, assay showed 100% sensitivity and specificity. Assay wells are stable for at least 26 weeks when stored at 4°C, and can tolerate elevated temperatures of up to 35°C for two weeks. The developed assay has high potential to be used in low-resource laboratories.

Array-in-well platform-based multiplex assay for the simultaneous detection of anti-HIV- and treponemal-antibodies, and Hepatitis B surface antigen

Multiplex assays detecting sets of related clinical analytes simultaneously can save considerable amount of time and resources. Array-in-well (AIW) is a powerful platform for the multiplex detection of different analytes where microarrays can be printed at the bottom of microtiter wells, thus combining the potential of microarrays with the ease of handling microtiter wells. We have developed a single-step AIW assay for the simultaneous screening of HIV, Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum (causing syphilis) and Hepatitis B virus infections targeting the specific detection of anti-HIV- and treponemal-antibodies and Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), respectively, using two different fluorescent label technologies i.e. DyLight 633 and europium nanoparticle. Double-antigen assay formats were used for anti-HIV- and treponemal-antibody detection that can simultaneously detect both IgG and IgM, and thus reduce the window period of detection. AIW assay was evaluated with well characterized serum/plasma samples (n=111), and the qualitative results were in near complete agreement with those of the reference assays. The AIW assay exhibited 100% sensitivities for all three analytes, and 100% specificities for anti-HIV antibodies and HBsAg, and 98.6% specificity for treponemal antibodies. The limit of detection of HBsAg in AIW assay was 0.18 ng/ml. This high performing AIW assay has the potential to be used as a multiplex screening test for these three infections.

New Strategies for Blood Donor Screening for Hepatitis B Virus

Serologic testing for hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface antigen (HBsAg) and antibody to HBV core antigen (anti-HBc) has historically been the foundation of blood screening, while HBV nucleic acid testing (NAT) was recently developed to detect HBsAg-negative, anti-HBc-negative blood units donated during early acute infection. Comparison data on seroconversion panels using HBsAg assays of varying sensitivities and pooled- or single-sample NAT, along with viral load estimates corresponding to HBsAg assay detection limits, have provided information on the theoretical benefits of NAT relative to HBsAg. Model-derived estimates have generally been predictive of the yields of DNA-positive, HBsAg-negative window period blood units detected in a number of studies from Europe, Japan, and the US. Studies indicate that the added benefit of pooled-sample NAT is relatively small in areas of low endemicity, with greater yields in areas highly endemic for HBV. Single-sample NAT would offer more significant early window period closure and could prevent a moderate number of residual HBV transmissions not detected by HBsAg assays; however, no fully automated single-sample HBV NAT systems are currently available.Even single-sample HBV NAT may not substitute for anti-HBc screening, as indicated by studies of donors with isolated anti-HBc who have extremely low DNA levels undetectable by standard single-sample NAT and who have been associated with transfusion-transmitted HBV. Moreover, HBsAg testing may still be needed even in the setting of combined anti-HBc and NAT screening. HBsAg-positive units from donors in the chronic stage of infection may contain very low or intermittently detectable DNA levels that single-sample NAT would miss. Although such donors are usually anti-HBc reactive and would be interdicted by anti-HBc screening, some lack anti-HBc. Extensive parallel testing will be needed to determine whether single-sample NAT in combination with anti-HBc might be sufficient to detect all the infectious donors currently interdicted by HBsAg testing. In countries that do not screen for anti-HBc, HBsAg testing would be the only means of detecting donations from chronically infected individuals with low/intermittently detectable DNA, since even single-donor NAT would not identify these potentially infectious blood units. In the future, the current fully automated HBsAg assays may incorporate significant sensitivity improvements, and automated single-sample HBV NAT may become a reality. Each country will need to develop its blood screening strategy based on HBV endemicity, yields of infectious units detected by different serologic/NAT screening methods, and cost effectiveness of test methods in ensuring blood safety.

Detecting a secreted gastric cancer biomarker molecule by targeted nanoparticles for real-time diagnostics

PURPOSE

A real time detection of gastric cancer-associated biomarker molecules in the lumen of the stomach could assist in early detection of this multi-step malignancy.

METHODS

Employing α1-antitrypsin precursor (A1AT) as a secreted biomarker model, a platform with immunoassay capabilities, comprising sensing and detecting compartments was developed. It was made of a microarray-type functionalized glass, containing a high density of amine groups. Trypsin, the capturing moiety, was immobilized to the glass surface with the aid of a PEG-based spacer mixture, identified as being crucial for both capturing and detecting properties. The detecting compartment contained near infrared fluorescently labeled nanoparticles conjugated to A1AT-specific antibodies, aimed at generating an optical signal, detectable by a conventional endoscope or a video capsule.

RESULTS

The specific recognition reaction between the captured A1AT and the immuno-nanoparticles generated a profound fluorescence with a signal to noise ratio (SNR) of 12-32, in a biomarker-concentration dependent manner. Moreover, the optical recognition signal was intense enough to be detected by a video capsule simulator (with optical detection capabilities of a video capsule) with a SNR of 6-20.

CONCLUSIONS

This platform could serve as a real time diagnostic kit for early detection of a secreted biomarker of gastric cancer.

Detection of pathogenic mycobacteria based on functionalized quantum dots coupled with immunomagnetic separation

Mycobacteria have always proven difficult to identify due to their low growth rate and fastidious nature. Therefore molecular biology and more recently nanotechnology, have been exploited from early on for the detection of these pathogens. Here we present the first stage of development of an assay incorporating cadmium selenide quantum dots (QDs) for the detection of mycobacterial surface antigens. The principle of the assay is the separation of bacterial cells using magnetic beads coupled with genus-specific polyclonal antibodies and monoclonal antibodies for heparin-binding hemagglutinin. These complexes are then tagged with anti-mouse biotinylated antibody and finally streptavidin-conjugated QDs which leads to the detection of a fluorescent signal. For the evaluation of performance, the method under study was applied on Mycobacterium bovis BCG and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (positive controls), as well as E. coli and Salmonella spp. that constituted the negative controls. The direct observation of the latter category of samples did not reveal fluorescence as opposed to the mycobacteria mentioned above. The minimum detection limit of the assay was defined to 10⁴ bacteria/ml, which could be further decreased by a 1 log when fluorescence was measured with a spectrofluorometer. The method described here can be easily adjusted for any other protein target of either the pathogen or the host, and once fully developed it will be directly applicable on clinical samples.

Lanthanide-based time-resolved luminescence immunoassays

The sensitive and specific detection of analytes such as proteins in biological samples is critical for a variety of applications, for example disease diagnosis. In immunoassays a signal in response to the concentration of analyte present is generated by use of antibodies labeled with radioisotopes, luminophores, or enzymes. All immunoassays suffer to some extent from the problem of the background signal observed in the absence of analyte, which limits the sensitivity and dynamic range that can be achieved. This is especially the case for homogeneous immunoassays and surface measurements on tissue sections and membranes, which typically have a high background because of sample autofluorescence. One way of minimizing background in immunoassays involves the use of lanthanide chelate labels. Luminescent lanthanide complexes have exceedingly long-lived luminescence in comparison with conventional fluorophores, enabling the short-lived background interferences to be removed via time-gated acquisition and delivering greater assay sensitivity and a broader dynamic range. This review highlights the potential of using lanthanide luminescence to design sensitive and specific immunoassays. Techniques for labeling biomolecules with lanthanide chelate tags are discussed, with aspects of chelate design. Microtitre plate-based heterogeneous and homogeneous assays are reviewed and compared in terms of sensitivity, dynamic range, and convenience. The great potential of surface-based time-resolved imaging techniques for biomolecules on gels, membranes, and tissue sections using lanthanide tracers in proteomics applications is also emphasized.

Simultaneous detection of Human Immunodeficiency Virus 1 and Hepatitis B virus infections using a dual-label time-resolved fluorometric assay

A highly specific and novel dual-label time-resolved immunofluorometric assay was developed exploiting the unique emission wavelengths of the intrinsically fluorescent terbium (Tb³⁺) and europium (Eu³⁺) tracers for the simultaneous detection of human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections, respectively. HIV-1 infection was detected using a double antigen sandwich format wherein anti-HIV-1 antibodies were captured using an in vivo biotinylated version of a chimeric HIV-1 antigen and revealed using the same antigen labeled with Tb³⁺ chelate. Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), which served as the marker of HBV infection, was detected in a double antibody sandwich using two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), one chemically biotinylated to capture, and the other labeled with Eu³⁺ nanoparticles, to reveal. The performance of the assay was evaluated using a collection (n = 60) of in-house and commercially available human sera panels. This evaluation showed the dual-label assay to possess high degrees of specificity and sensitivity, comparable to those of commercially available, single analyte-specific kits for the detection of HBsAg antigen and anti-HIV antibodies. This work demonstrates the feasibility of developing a potentially time- and resource-saving multiplex assay for screening serum samples for multiple infections in a blood bank setting.

Using nanoparticles to push the limits of detection

The size-dependent chemical and physical properties of nanoparticles inspire the design of unique assays and the use of new detection schemes while also offering the opportunity to vastly improve the results achieved when using traditional signal transduction methods. Herein, the most commonly exploited nanoparticle amplification schemes are organized and reviewed on the basis of the detection methods used to monitor the nanoparticle property of interest. The topics covered include the improved signal photostability and brightness of semiconductor quantum dots, the increased extinction coefficient of noble metal nanoparticles, the advantages of having a magnetic label on individual target molecules to facilitate separation, the multiplexing that is enabled with 'barcoded' nanoparticles, and the greatly amplified signals that can be achieved on the basis of conductivity changes, generated current, or simply by adding a 'massive' nanoparticle onto a small molecule target. Common approaches emerge among different nanoparticle materials and detection schemes, and it is also clear that there is still significant opportunity to use nanoparticles in as-yet-unimagined ways to further improve assay and sensor limits of detection.

Silica-based multimodal/multifunctional nanoparticles for bioimaging and biosensing applications

In the last decade, the field of nanoparticle (NP) technology has attracted immense interest in bioimaging and biosensing research. This technology has demonstrated its capability in obtaining sensitive data in a noninvasive manner, promising a breakthrough in early-stage cancer diagnosis, stem cell tracking, drug delivery, pathogen detection and gene delivery in the near future. However, successful and wide application of this technology relies greatly on robust NP engineering and synthesis methodologies. The NP development steps involve design, synthesis, surface modification and bioconjugation. Each of these steps is critical in determining the overall performance of NPs. It is desirable to obtain NPs that are highly sensitive, stable, imageable, biocompatible and targetable. It is also desirable to obtain multimodal/multifunctional NPs that will enable imaging/sensing of the target using multiple imaging/sensing modalities. In this review, we focus on silica NPs that have been developed for biosensing applications and silica-based multimodal/multifunctional NPs for bioimaging applications.

An Au/Si hetero-nanorod-based biosensor for Salmonella detection

We present a novel and effective food-borne bacteria detection method. A hetero-structured silicon/gold nanorod array fabricated by the glancing angle deposition method is functionalized with anti-Salmonella antibodies and organic dye molecules. Due to the high aspect ratio nature of the Si nanorods, dye molecules attached to the Si nanorods produce an enhanced fluorescence upon capture and detection of Salmonella. This bio-functional hetero-nanorod detection method has great potential in the food safety industry as well as in biomedical diagnostics.

Particulate and soluble Eu(III)-chelates as donor labels in homogeneous fluorescence resonance energy transfer based immunoassay

Many well-established homogeneous separation free immunoassays rely on particulate label technologies. Particles generally contain a high concentration of the embedded label and they have a large surface area, which enables conjugation of a large amount of protein per particle. Eu(III)-chelate dyed nanoparticles have been successfully used as labels in heterogeneous and homogeneous immunoassays. In this study, we compared the characteristics of two homogeneous competitive immunoassays using either soluble Eu(III)-chelates or polystyrene particles containing Eu(III)-chelates as donors in a fluorescence resonance energy transfer based assay. The use of the particulate label significantly increased the obtained sensitized emission, which was generated by a single binding event. This was due to the extremely high specific activity of the nanoparticle label and also in some extent the longer Förster radius between the donor and the acceptor. The amount of the binder protein used in the assay could be decreased by 10-fold without impairing the obtainable sensitized emission, which subsequently led to improved assay sensitivity. The optimized assay using particulate donor had the lowest limit of detection (calculated using 3 x S.D. of the 0 nM standard) 50pM of estradiol in the assay well, which was approximately 20-fold more sensitive than assays using soluble Eu(III)-chelates.

Multiple Fluorescent Labeling of Silica Nanoparticles with Lanthanide Chelates for Highly Sensitive Time-Resolved Immunofluorometric Assays

Background: Time-resolved immunofluorometric assays (TrIFA) using lanthanide-labeled nanoparticles have greatly increased the sensitivity of immunoassays. Current labeling strategies, however, use either physical doping of lanthanide chelates into preformed nanoparticles or covalent linking of lanthanide chelates to precursors used for making nanoparticles; both these strategies have drawbacks.

Methods: Luminescent Eu(III) and Tb(III) chelates were covalently coated on the surface of preformed silica nanoparticles to which detection antibodies or bridging proteins for antibody binding were conjugated. We used the resulting conjugates in TrIFA for detection of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg), both individually and simultaneously. We compared the results of the newly established method with results of an ELISA for serum samples. Positive samples identified by TrIFA but not by ELISA were confirmed by additional assays, including real-time PCR detection of viral DNA.

Results: The prepared nanoparticle conjugates were homogeneous in size, at ∼55 (5) nm in diameter [mean (SD)], were stable for long-time storage (>2 years), and contained more chelates [6.86 × 105 for Eu(III), 4.73 × 104 for Tb(III)] per nanoparticle than particles made as previously reported. The TrIFA established for HBsAg had a comparable or lower detection limit (0.0092 μg/L) than existing nanoparticle-based TrIFA or ELISA. The TrIFA for HBeAg had a much lower detection limit [10.0 National Centre Unit (NCU)/L] than ELISA and detected HBeAg in 5 samples missed by the ELISA method. Simultaneous TrIFA for both HBsAg and HBeAg was achieved with detection limits (0.033 μg/L for HBsAg and 27.0 NCU/L for HBeAg) close to those of the individual assays.

Conclusions: Covalent surface labeling of silica nanoparticles with lanthanide chelates provides good fluorescent labels that can be used in TrIFA for highly sensitive and robust detection of clinical targets.

Sensitive Listeria spp. immunoassay based on europium(III) nanoparticulate labels using time-resolved fluorescence

Listeria spp. are Gram-positive rod shaped bacteria found universally in the environment. Pathogenic Listeria monocytogenes is seldom harmful to healthy adults, but can cause serious disease, listeriosis, especially to pregnant women, neonates, and elderly or immunocompromised people. Conventional methods for screening Listeria in food samples are time consuming and laborious, involving the use of a range of liquid media and plate cultures. In the current study, the total analysis time was shortened by employing a sensitive Listeria assay, which was able to detect the bacteria in low concentrations. Sensitivity of the sandwich immunoassay was substantially improved by utilizing europium(III)-chelate containing latex nanoparticles as tracers. Each 107 nm nanoparticle contained approximately 31000 europium(III)-chelates which enhanced the specific activity of the label. The sensitive nanoparticulate immunoassay developed for Listeria spp. was performed in one-step and two-step formats. One-step assay was notably faster, 15 min, and simpler to execute having analytical sensitivity of 300 CFU/ml and a dynamic range of three orders of magnitude. The sensitivity, 20 CFU/ml, of the 4 h two-step assay clearly exceeded that of the one-step assay, and the dynamic range was nearly five orders of magnitude. Food and environmental samples were measured against a commercial L. monocytogenes immunoassay with good correlation. The developed sensitive assay enabled shorter sample enrichment times and, therefore, faster analysis of Listeria spp. Obviously the detection of several other bacteria can also be enhanced by applying the nanoparticle assay technology.

Protein detection using biobarcodes

Over the past 50 years the development of assays for the detection of protein analytes has been driven by continuing demands for higher levels of sensitivity and multiplexing. The result has been a progression of sandwich-type immunoassays, starting with simple radioisotopic, colorimetric, or fluorescent labeling systems to include various enzymatic or nanostructure-based signal amplification schemes, with a concomitant sensitivity increase of over 1 million fold. Multiplexing of samples and tests has been enabled by microplate and microarray platforms, respectively, or lately by various molecular barcoding systems. Two different platforms have emerged as the current front-runners by combining a nucleic acid amplification step with the standard two-sided immunoassay. In both, the captured protein analyte is replaced by a multiplicity of oligonucleotides that serve as surrogate targets. One of these platforms employs DNA or RNA polymerases for the amplification step, while detection is by fluorescence. The other is based on gold nanoparticles for both amplification as well as detection. The latter technology, now termed Biobarcode, is completely enzyme-free and offers potentially much higher multiplexing power.

Polyhydroxyalkanoate chip for the specific immobilization of recombinant proteins and its applications in immunodiagnostics

In this study, a novel strategy was developed for the highly selective immobilization of proteins, using the polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) depolymerase substrate binding domain (SBD) as an active binding domain. In order to determine the appropriacy of this method for immunodiagnostic assays, the single-chain antibody (ScFv) against the hepatitis B virus (HBV) preS2 surface protein and the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) envelope protein (SCVe) were fused to the SBD, then directly immobilized on PHA-coated slides via microspotting. The fluorescence-labeled HBV antigen and the antibody against SCVe were then utilized to examine specific interactions on the PHA-coated surfaces. Fluorescence signals were detected only at the spotted positions, thereby indicating a high degree of affinity and selectivity for their corresponding antigens/antibodies. Furthermore, we detected small amounts of ScFv-SBD (2.7 ng/mL) and SCVe-SBD fusion proteins (0.6 ng/mL). Therefore, this microarray platform technology, using PHA and SBD, appears generally appropriate for immunodiagnosis, with no special requirements with regard to synthetic or chemical modification of the biomolecules or the solid surface.