Magnetic Nanoparticle Strips for Acquiring Blood Biomarkers
With a strip test that resembles those for pregnancy or urine glucose, scientists in Moscow have invented a biosensor using magnetic nanoparticles with attached antibodies on a porous material with two test lanes (one for capture, the other for control). They describe it as this: “….the magnetic nanoparticles ‘link’ with antibodies to the required protein and then they are placed on a porous plate close to the intended point of contact with the test solution. The liquid, which spreads along the plate due to capillary action, captures the magnetic particles. It then meets two lines – the test line and the control line. The test line contains antibodies that capture the protein in question and also the magnetic markers that became attached to molecules of the protein due to the fact that the nanoparticles are also ‘linked’ to the antibodies. The control line only captures the antibodies with magnetic markers, and it will be activated in any case, if the test strip is usable. The control line serves as an indicator as to whether the test is suitable for use, the protein antibodies in it have not been destroyed due to improper storage, and the test liquid has been applied correctly.” MORE
Image Credit: General Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (GPI RAS) and Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) and MDTmag.com