Integrated Bioluminescent Immunoassays for High-Throughput Sampling and Continuous Monitoring of Cytokines

Anal Chem. 2023 Jun 13;95(23):8922-8931. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c00745. Epub 2023 May 30.

Abstract

Immunoassays show great potential for the detection of low levels of cytokines, due to their high sensitivity and excellent specificity. There is a particular demand for biosensors that enable both high-throughput screening and continuous monitoring of clinically relevant cytokines such as interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα). To this end, we here introduce a novel bioluminescent immunoassay based on the ratiometric plug-and-play immunodiagnostics (RAPPID) platform, with an improved intrinsic signal-to-background and an >80-fold increase in the luminescent signal. The new dRAPPID assay, comprising a dimeric protein G adapter connected via a semiflexible linker, was applied to detect the secretion of IL-6 by breast carcinoma cells upon TNFα stimulation and the production of low concentrations of IL-6 (∼18 pM) in an endotoxin-stimulated human 3D muscle tissue model. Moreover, we integrated the dRAPPID assay in a newly developed microfluidic device for the simultaneous and continuous monitoring of changes in IL-6 and TNFα in the low-nanomolar range. The luminescence-based read-out and the homogeneous nature of the dRAPPID platform allowed for detection with a simple measurement setup, consisting of a digital camera and a light-sealed box. This permits the usage of the continuous dRAPPID monitoring chip at the point of need, without the requirement for complex or expensive detection techniques.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cytokines*
  • Humans
  • Immunoassay / methods
  • Immunologic Tests
  • Interleukin-6
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*

Substances

  • Cytokines
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
  • Interleukin-6