Development of the Biological Immuno-Magnetic Assay System for Rapid Diagnosis from Clinical Samples

摘要

Development of semi-automated Immuno-Magnetic Separation (IMS) systems for detection of biological agents present in clinical, environmental, and food samples is described. The Immuno-Magnetic Assay System (IMAS) is an advancement of two predecessor prototype systems, the Biological Immuno-Magnetic Aerosol Sensor (BIAS) and the Lab-BIAS. The IMAS is a semi-automated computer controlled device that employs antibodies and magnetic beads to recover target microorganisms from liquid samples, remove sample substances that may interfere with detection, and present recovered organisms to generate a detection signal. Utility of the IMAS was demonstrated with sensitive detection of microorganisms and human T-cells suspended in buffer or blood. Development of additional technologies that may advance IMS-based detection is also described. IMS coupled with electrochemiluminescence, which offers high signal-to-noise ratios, provided very sensitive detection of bacterial cells or spores suspended in human serum, environmental waters, various foods, and soils. The Multiple-well Magnetic Immunoassay (MMIA) was developed to provide simultaneous sample processing and biological agent detection of up to 96 specimens. The MMIA provides the basis for the next generation of IMS-based detection systems.