title: Conversion of a laboratory-based test for phenylalanine detection to a simple paper-based format and implications for PKU screening in low-resource settings.
abstract: Laboratory-based testing does not reach many individuals in lower-resource settings who could benefit from access to appropriate tests for diagnosis and therapy. A critical issue is laboratory-based testing often requires an environment with a high level of resources and supporting infrastructure that is not available in many areas of the world. The current report describes the conversion of a laboratory-based test for phenylalanine detection to a simple paper-based test appropriate for use in low-resource settings. The paper-based test is easy to operate, with all reagents stored dry on the card, is compatible with visible detection for clinically relevant concentrations of phenylalanine, and has a time to result of 10 minutes. Next steps for test development are discussed in the context of the potential for the paper-based Phe test to be used as a newborn PKU screening test in settings that are not well served by existing screening approaches.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Thiessen
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Robinson
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: De Los Reyes
authors.forename: Raymond J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Monnat
authors.forename: Elain
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fu
mesh_terms: D003124:Colorimetry; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D015997:Neonatal Screening / Q000379:methods*; D009580:Nitroblue Tetrazolium / Q000737:chemistry; D010649:Phenylalanine / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood*; D010661:Phenylketonurias / Q000175:diagnosis*; D013194:Staining and Labeling / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D009580:Nitroblue Tetrazolium; D010649:Phenylalanine