Sample-to-Answer Point-of-Care Blood Lead Level Test

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Analytical Chemistry
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Lead exposure in children causes significant health issues, including developmental delays and intelligence deficits.
• Effective screening programs are vital for early detection and intervention, particularly in low-resource settings.
• Existing screening tools often lack the portability, affordability, and ease of use required for widespread accessibility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a low-cost, handheld, sample-to-answer system for detecting lead in whole blood.
• To create an accessible screening tool suitable for use in resource-limited environments and underserved populations.
• To achieve a limit of detection below the established blood lead reference value.

Main Methods:

• A novel assay that simultaneously lyses blood cells, liberates lead, aggregates proteins, and separates lead via filtration.
• Utilized a screen-printed carbon electrode and a low-cost potentiostat for anodic stripping voltammetry.
• Developed a streamlined sample-to-answer workflow for rapid lead detection.

Main Results:

• Achieved a limit of detection of 1.44 μg/dL for whole blood lead.
• This detection limit is below the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's reference value of 3.5 μg/dL.
• Validated the system with animal reference samples, showing excellent agreement with the calibration curve near the threshold.

Conclusions:

• The developed handheld system offers a low-cost, portable, and user-friendly solution for blood lead detection.
• This technology has the potential to significantly improve lead screening accessibility, especially in vulnerable populations and low-resource settings.
• The system's performance validates its utility for identifying children at risk of lead poisoning.