Bio-sample detection on paper-based devices with inkjet printer-sprayed reagents

Development of a µPAD for the point-of-care testing of serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (SGOT)

A wax-patterned paper analytical device (µPAD) has been developed for point-of-care colourimetric testing of serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (SGOT). The detection method was based on the transamination reaction of aspartate with α-ketoglutarate, leading to the formation of oxaloacetate which reacts with the reagent Fast Blue BB salt and forms a cavern pink colour. The intensity of the cavern pink colour grows as the concentration of SGOT increases. UV-visible spectroscopy was utilized to optimize reaction conditions, and the optimized reagents were dropped onto the wax-patterned paper. The coloured PADs, after the addition of SGOT, have been photographed, and a colour band has been generated to correlate the SGOT concentration visually. The images were used to calculate the intensity values using ImageJ software, which inturn was used to calculate the SGOT concentration. The PADs were also tested with serum samples, and SGOT spiked serum samples. The PAD could detect the SGOT concentration ranging from 5 to 200 U/L. The analysis yielded highly accurate results with less than 6% relative error compared to the clinical sample. This colourimetric test demonstrated exceptional selectivity in the presence of other biomolecules in the blood serum, with a detection limit of 2.77 U/L and a limit of quantification of 9.25 U/L. Additionally, a plasma separation membrane was integrated with the PAD to directly test SGOT from finger-prick blood samples.

Development of a paper-based analytical device for the colourimetric detection of alanine transaminase and the application of deep learning for image analysis

A paper-based colourimetric assay for the detection of alanine transaminase has been developed. In the presence of alanine transaminase, 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazine changes to pyruvate hydrazone leading to a colour change from pale yellow to dark yellow. Reaction conditions were optimized using absorption spectroscopic studies. Hydrophobic patterns on the Whatman chromatographic paper were created by wax printing, and the reagents were drop cast at the reagent zone. On the paper device, the intensity of the yellow colour increases with ALT concentration in the range of 20-140 U/L in human serum. For the quantification of ALT, coloured images were captured using a digital camera and were processed with Image J software. The machine learning approach was also explored for the ALT analysis by training with colour images of the paper device and testing using a cross-validation procedure. The results obtained with real clinical samples on the paper device showed good accuracy of less than 5% relative error with the clinical lab results. Furthermore, the paper device shows high selectivity to ALT in the presence of various interfering species in blood serum with a sensitivity of 0.261 a.u/(U/L), a detection limit of 4.12 U/L, and precise results with an RSD of less than 7%. For the testing of whole blood, a plasma separation membrane was integrated with the patterned paper.

One-Step Polylactic Acid Screen-Printing Microfluidic Paper-Based Analytical Device: Application for Simultaneous Detection of Nitrite and Nitrate in Food Samples

In this work, we report a one-step approach for fabricating screened-printed microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (μPADs) using polylactic acid as a new hydrophobic material. A polylactic acid solution was screen printed onto chromatography papers to create hydrophobic patterns for fluidic channels. The optimal polylactic acid concentration for successful device fabrication is 9% w/v. The μPADs were fabricated within 2 min and provided high reproducibility and stability. The utility of polylactic acid screen-printing was demonstrated for the simultaneous detection of nitrite and nitrate using colorimetric detection. Under optimized experimental conditions, the detection limits and the linear ranges, respectively, were 1.2 mg L−1 and 2–10 mg L−1 for nitrite and 3.6 mg L−1 and 10–50 mg L−1 for nitrate. The detection times for both ions were found to be within 12 min. The developed μPAD was applied for the simultaneous determination of these ions in food samples, and no significant differences in the analytical results were observed compared to those of the reference method. The polylactic acid screen-printing approach presented here provides a simple, rapid, and cost-effective alternative fabrication method for fabricating μPADs.

The Yxy colour space parameters as novel signalling tools for digital imaging sensors in the analytical laboratory

Digital imaging devices can be promising, sensitive, and cost-effective chemical sensors for resource-limited settings and locally deprived communities.

Aspartate Aminotransferase and Alanine Aminotransferase Detection on Paper-Based Analytical Devices with Inkjet Printer-Sprayed Reagents

General biochemistry detection on paper-based microanalytical devices (PADs) uses pipette titration. However, such an approach is extremely time-consuming for large-scale detection processes. Furthermore, while automated methods are available for increasing the efficiency of large-scale PAD production, the related equipment is very expensive. Accordingly, this study proposes a low-cost method for PAD manufacture, in which the reagent is applied using a modified inkjet printer. The optimal reaction times for the detection of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) are shown to be 6 and 7 min, respectively, given AST and ALT concentrations in the range of 5.4 to 91.2 U/L (R² = 0.9932) and 5.38 to 86.1 U/L (R² = 0.9944). The experimental results obtained using the proposed PADs for the concentration detection of AST and ALT in real human blood serum samples are found to be in good agreement with those obtained using a traditional spectrophotometric detection method by National Cheng Kung University hospital.

A simple and sensitive detection of glutamic-pyruvic transaminase activity based on fluorescence quenching of bovine serum albumin

It is well known that Cu(ii) can coordinate withl-alanine (Cu–Ala), which can be destroyed through the addition of glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (GPT) since GPT can effectively catalyze the conversion ofl-alanine into keto-acetic acid.