title: Flotation Immunoassay: Masking the Signal from Free Reporters in Sandwich Immunoassays.
abstract: In this work, we demonstrate that signal-masking reagents together with appropriate capture antibody carriers can eliminate the washing steps in sandwich immunoassays. A flotation immunoassay (FI) platform was developed with horseradish peroxidase chemiluminescence as the reporter system, the dye Brilliant Blue FCF as the signal-masking reagent, and buoyant silica micro-bubbles as the capture antibody carriers. Only reporters captured on micro-bubbles float above the dye and become visible in an analyte-dependent manner. These FIs are capable of detecting proteins down to attomole levels and as few as 10(6) virus particles. This signal-masking strategy represents a novel approach to simple, sensitive and quantitative immunoassays in both laboratory and point-of-care settings.
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Biology and Biochemistry, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Anna E V
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Hagström
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Jinsu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Gavin
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Garvey
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Paterson
authors.affiliation: Tecnológico de Monterrey, Departamento de Biotecnología e Ingeniería de Alimentos, Monterrey, Nuevo León 64849, Mexico.
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ruiz-Ruiz
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Balakrishnan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Raja
authors.affiliation: Baylor College of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Strych
authors.affiliation: Tecnológico de Monterrey, Departamento de Biotecnología e Ingeniería de Alimentos, Monterrey, Nuevo León 64849, Mexico.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rito-Palomares
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Katerina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kourentzi
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
authors.forename: Jacinta C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Conrad
authors.affiliation: Baylor College of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Robert L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Atmar
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Department of Biology and Biochemistry, Houston, TX 77204, USA.|University of Houston, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Houston, TX 77204, USA.|Tecnológico de Monterrey, Departamento de Biotecnología e Ingeniería de Alimentos, Monterrey, Nuevo León 64849, Mexico.
authors.forename: Richard C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Willson
mesh_terms: D007118:Immunoassay / Q000379:methods*; D008163:Luminescent Measurements; D019095:Point-of-Care Systems; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013048:Specimen Handling / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D011506:Proteins