Immunoassay quantification using surface-enhanced fluorescence (SEF) tags

Area of Science:

• Biomedical research
• Nanotechnology
• Analytical chemistry

Background:

• Fluorescence immunoassays are crucial for biomedical research and diagnostics.
• Existing organic dye probes have limitations, necessitating development of new fluorescence tags.
• There is a need for highly sensitive fluorescence tags with low limits of detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the surface-enhanced fluorescence (SEF) phenomenon for developing novel tags.
• To create SEF tags for sensitive detection and quantification of Immunoglobulin-M (IgM).

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of shell-isolated gold nanoparticles (Au-SHINs) with a Nile Blue fluorescent layer.
• Coating Au-SHINs with silica to create SEF tags.
• Functionalization of SEF tags with antibodies for IgM detection in a sandwich immunoassay format.

Main Results:

• Successful detection of IgM concentrations as low as 10 ng/mL.
• Demonstrated a linear correlation between fluorescence intensity and IgM concentration.
• Developed a novel SEF tag system for enhanced fluorescence detection.

Conclusions:

• The developed SEF tags show significant potential for sensitive IgM detection.
• This approach offers an improvement over traditional fluorescence-based immunoassay probes.
• The SEF tags can be utilized in various diagnostic and research applications requiring high sensitivity.