Chemiluminescent lateral flow assay based on transparent nitrocellulose membrane

Area of Science:

• Biosensing and Diagnostics
• Materials Science for Biosensors
• Paper-Based Analytical Devices

Background:

• Lateral flow assays (LFA) are crucial for rapid point-of-care disease detection.
• Chemiluminescence LFA (CL-LFA) offers enhanced sensitivity but can be limited by signal obstruction.
• Nitrocellulose membranes in LFA scatter light, reducing signal intensity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance chemiluminescence lateral flow assay (CL-LFA) performance.
• To improve light signal detection in CL-LFA by increasing transparency of test (T) and control (C) line areas.
• To investigate the effect of paraffin liquid treatment on nitrocellulose membranes for CL-LFA.

Main Methods:

• Applying paraffin liquid to the nitrocellulose (NC) membrane's T and C line areas.
• Tuning membrane transparency by adjusting paraffin volume (12.47% to 78.53%).
• Measuring light attenuation constants and detection limits for cardiac troponin I (cTnI).

Main Results:

• Transparent T and C line regions in CL-LFA generate stronger light signals.
• Paraffin treatment reduced light scattering and light attenuation.
• Achieved a detection limit of 0.063 ng/mL for cTnI, with effective clinical sample discrimination.

Conclusions:

• Paraffin liquid treatment enhances CL-LFA sensitivity without damaging the NC membrane.
• This method offers tunable transparency and improved signal detection for paper-based biosensors.
• The findings support broader applications of LFA in diagnostics and disease detection.