Eu-Chelate Polystyrene Microsphere-Based Lateral Flow Immunoassay Platform for hs-CRP Detection

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry
• Immunodiagnostics

Background:

• Inflammation from infections poses a global health risk.
• Blood C-reactive protein (CRP) indicates inflammation, with subtle changes potentially signaling chronic diseases.
• A need exists for sensitive, rapid, and affordable high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel europium-chelate polystyrene microsphere (EuPSM)-based lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) for quantitative hs-CRP detection.
• To optimize the EuPSM-based LFIA for enhanced sensitivity and a wide detection range.
• To validate the clinical applicability of the developed LFIA platform.

Main Methods:

• Development of a EuPSM-based lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA).
• Integration of the LFIA with a benchtop fluorescence analyzer.
• Optimization of antibody density on EuPSM and validation with clinical serum samples.

Main Results:

• Achieved a limit of detection of 0.76 pg/mL for hs-CRP.
• Established a broad detection range from 0.025 ng/mL to 250 ng/mL.
• Demonstrated high consistency with standard clinical methods in serum sample analysis.

Conclusions:

• The EuPSM-based LFIA is a highly sensitive and rapid platform for hs-CRP detection.
• The assay shows significant potential for early disease detection and monitoring.
• The platform is adaptable for the sensitive detection of other biomarkers.