Development of a broad-spectrum one-step immunoassay for detection of glucocorticoids in milk using magnetosome-based immunomagnetic beads

Immunomagnetic beads provide novel tools for high-throughput immunoassay techniques. In this study, protein G (PG) was immobilized onto bacterial magentic particles (BMPs) using an additional cysteine residue at the C-terminus. A broad-spectrum monoclonal antibody against glucocorticoids (GCs) was attached to BMPs through PG-Fc interaction, generating BMP-PG-mIgG immunomagentic beads. A sensitive one-step immunoassay was developed for GCs based on combination of BMP-PG-mIgG and dexamethasone-horseradish peroxidase tracer (DMS-HRP). The developed assay exhibited half inhibitory concentrations (IC50) for dexamethasone (DMS), betamethasone (BMS), prednisolone (PNS), hydrocortisone (HCS), beclomethasone (BCMS), cortisone (CS), 6-α-methylprednisone (6-α-MPNS), fludrocortisone acetate (HFCS) of 0.98, 1.49, 2.42, 9.29, 1.63, 6.13, 7.3, and 4.89 ng/mL, respectively. The method showed recoveries ranging rates from 86.5 % to 117 % with a coefficient of variation less than 12.3 % in milk sample, which showed a good correlation with LC-MS/MS. Thus, the proposed assay offers a rapid and broad-spectrum screening tool for simultaneous detection of GCs in milk.

Multifunctional Polystyrene Core/Silica Shell Microparticles with Antifouling Properties for Bead-Based Multiplexed and Quantitative Analysis

Commercial bead-based assays are commonly built upon polystyrene particles. The polymeric carrier can be encoded with organic dyes and has ideal material properties for cytometric applications such as low density and high refractive index. However, functional groups are conventionally integrated during polymerization and subsequent modification is limited to the reactivity of those groups. Additionally, polystyrene as the core material leads to many hydrophobic areas still being present on the beads' surfaces even after functionalization, rendering the particles prone to nonspecific adsorption during an application. The latter calls for several washing steps and the use of additives in (bio)analytical assays. In this contribution, we show how these limitations can be overcome by using monodisperse polystyrene (PS) core/silica (SiO₂) shell particles (SiO₂@PS). Two different hydrophobic BODIPY (boron-dipyrromethene) dyes were encapsulated inside a poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) -stabilized polystyrene core in different concentrations to create 5-plex arrays in two separate detection channels of a cytometer. A subsequent modification of the silica shell with an equimolar APTES/PEGS (aminopropyltriethoxysilane/polyethylene glycol silane) blend added multifunctional properties to the hybrid core/shell microparticles in a single step: APTES provides amino groups for the attachment of a caffeine derivative (as a hapten) to create antigen-coupled microspheres; the PEG moiety effectively suppresses nonspecific binding of antibodies, endowing the surface with antifouling properties. The particles were applied in a competitive fluorescence immunoassay in suspension, and a highly selective wash-free assay for the detection of caffeine in beverages was developed as a proof of concept.

Competitive Immunoassays for the Detection of Small Molecules Using Single Molecule Arrays

Small-molecule detection is important for many applications including clinical diagnostics, drug discovery, and measurements of environmental samples and agricultural products. Current techniques for small-molecule detection suffer from various limitations including low analytical sensitivity and complex sample processing. Furthermore, as a result of their small size, small molecules are difficult to detect using an antibody pair in a traditional sandwich assay format. To overcome these limitations, we developed an ultrasensitive competitive immunoassay for small-molecule detection using Single Molecule Arrays (Simoa). We show that the competitive Simoa assay is approximately 50-fold more sensitive than the conventional ELISA. We performed theoretical calculations to determine the factors that influence the sensitivity of competitive Simoa assays and used them to achieve maximal sensitivity. We also demonstrate detection of small molecules in complex biological samples. We show that the competitive Simoa assay is a simple, fast, and highly sensitive approach for ultrasensitive detection of small molecules.

Cross-linked chitosan/thiolated graphene quantum dots as a biocompatible polysaccharide towards aptamer immobilization

Chitosan has a number of commercial and possible biomedical uses. Chitosan as a polysaccharide is a bioactive polymer with a variety of applications due to its functional properties such as antibacterial activity, non-toxicity, ease of modification, and biodegradability. In this work, cross-linked chitosan/thiolated graphene quantum dot as a biocompatible polysaccharide was modified by gold nanoparticle and used for immobilization of ractopamine (RAC) aptamer. A highly specific DNA-aptamer (5'-SH-AAAAAGTGCGGGC-3'), selected to RAC was immobilized onto thiolated graphene quantum dots (GQDs)-chitosan (CS) nanocomposite modified by gold nanostructures (Au NSs) and used for quantification of RAC. Different shapes of gold nanostructures with various sizes from zero-dimensional nanoparticles to spherical structures were prepared by one-step template-assistant green electrodeposition method. Fully electrochemical methodology was used to prepare a new transducer on a glassy carbon surface which provided a high surface area to immobilize a high amount of the aptamer. Therefore, a label free electrochemical (EC) apta-assay for ultrasensitive detection of RAC was developed. A special immobilization media consisting of Au NSs/GQDs-CS/Cysteamine (CysA) was utilized to improve conductivity and performance of the biosensor. The RAC aptamer was attached on the Au NSs of the composite membrane via AuS bond. The fabrication process of the EC aptamer based assay was characterized by some electrochemical techniques. The peak currents obtained by differential pulse voltammetry decreased linearly with the increasing of RAC concentrations and the apta-assay responds approximately over a wide dynamic range of RAC concentration from 0.0044 fM to 19.55 μM. The low limit of quantification was 0.0044 fM.

A novel method for the sensitive detection of mutant proteins using a covalent-bonding tube-based proximity ligation assay

Tumorigenesis is the cumulative result of multiple gene mutations. The mutant proteins that are expressed by mutant genes in cancer cells are secreted into the blood and are useful biomarkers for the early diagnosis of cancer. However, some difficulties exist; for example, the same gene will express different protein mutants in different patients, and early tumors secrete only small amounts of mutant protein. Thus, the presence of mutant proteins in plasma has not previously been exploited for the early diagnosis of cancer. Proximity ligation assay is a protein-detection method that has been developed in recent years and has been widely used because of its high sensitivity. However, this approach still suffers from some shortcomings that should be addressed. In this paper, we develop a covalent-bonding tube-based proximity ligation assay (TB-PLA). The limit of detection of TB-PLA for 0.001pM, and the method exhibited a broad dynamic range of up to seven orders of magnitude. Furthermore, we coupled the conformation-specific antibody PAb240 of p53 mutants to PCR tubes for TB-PLA. The assay was capable of detecting an approximately 500-fold lower concentration of mutant p53 in serum compared with sandwich ELISA. Thus, we demonstrate TB-PLA to be a highly sensitive and effective approach that is suitable for the early clinical diagnosis of cancer using the conformation-specific antibodies of protein mutants.

A simple and portable device for the quantification of TNF-α in human plasma by means of on-chip magnetic bead-based proximity ligation assay

There is a general need in healthcare systems all around the world to reduce costs in terms of time and money without compromising patients outcome. Point-of-Care Testing (POCT) is currently being used in some applications (e.g. POC coagulation devices) as an alternative to already established standard central laboratory tests to overcome sample transportation and long turnaround times. The main objective of this investigation was to quantify Tumour Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-α) on-chip within the clinical relevant range of 5-100 pg/mL in human pooled plasma. The novel solid-phase assay developed in this study was a magnetic bead-based proximity ligation assay (PLA) in which one of the assay proximity probes was directly immobilised onto streptavidin-coated magnetic beads. The portable device was based on a disposable and single-use cyclo-olefin polymer (COP) microfluidic chip interfaced with a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) device previously developed in-house. Sample volume was 10 µL and total assay time under 3 h. The POC device and assay developed offer portability, smaller reagent and sample consumption, and faster time-to-results compared with standard ELISAs. Determination and monitoring of TNF-α therapy at the point-of-care will help to improve clinical and/or economical outcome in governmental healthcare budgets.

Sensitive detection and quantification of gliadin contamination in gluten-free food with immunomagnetic beads based liposomal fluorescence immunoassay

Gliadin from wheat is a common food allergen that can induce baker's asthma, wheat-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis, atopic dermatitis, and celiac disease. This gliadin assay focuses on rapidly screen and check for gluten contamination in raw materials and in the gluten-free food production process, not only for wheat-sensitive patients but also for the industries producing gluten-free foodstuffs. The developed assay incorporates the use of anti-gliadin antibody-conjugated immunomagnetic beads (IMBs) to capture the gliadin in samples and fluorescent dyes-loaded immunoliposomal nanovesicles (IMLNs) to produce and enhance the detection signal. Hence, a sandwich complex is formed as "IMBs-gliadin-IMLNs". Experimental results indicate that this detection platform exhibits good sensitivity for gliadin with a detection limit as low as 0.6 μg mL(-1) of gliadin; as the polyclonal antibody showed slight cross-reactions with barley and rye. Excellent recovery rates were found ranging from 83.5 to 102.6% as testing the spiked samples. Moreover, the CV (%) of intra- and inter-assay of this developed assay are 4.8-10.6% and 3.5-9.9%, respectively. Based on a parallel analysis of twenty food samples, the results of this developed assay provide a good consistency with those of an AOAC-approved ELISA kit without any false-negative results. The proposed assay method is thus a highly promising alternative method for detecting the contamination of gliadin in the food industry.