Application of functional microsphere in human hepatitis B virus surface antigen detection

Area of Science:

• Polymer Chemistry
• Biotechnology
• Immunodiagnostics

Background:

• Development of efficient carriers for biomolecule immobilization is crucial for diagnostic assays.
• Existing methods for Hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) detection may lack sensitivity or specificity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize uniform, amino-functionalized polymer microspheres using an emulsifier-free technique.
• To develop a highly sensitive and specific chemiluminescent immunoassay for HBsAg detection utilizing the synthesized microspheres.

Main Methods:

• Emulsifier-free emulsion polymerization to create amino-functionalized polymer microspheres (~400 nm).
• Characterization using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Zeta potential, and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FT-IR).
• Development of a chemiluminescent enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) involving antibody sandwiching, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) conjugation, and AMPPD substrate.

Main Results:

• Monodispersed amino-functionalized polymer microspheres with uniform size and good dispersity were successfully synthesized.
• Successful introduction of amino groups onto the microsphere surface was confirmed.
• The developed chemiluminescent ELISA demonstrated excellent specificity and high sensitivity for HBsAg detection.

Conclusions:

• The novel emulsifier-free polymerization technique yields effective amino-functionalized microspheres for antibody immobilization.
• The developed chemiluminescent immunoassay provides a sensitive and specific platform for HBsAg detection, applicable to clinical diagnostics.