Cytokine secretion assays provide the means to quantify intercellular-signaling proteins secreted by blood immune cells. These assays allow researchers and clinicians to obtain valuable information on the immune status of the donor. Previous studies have demonstrated that localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effects enable label-free, real-time biosensing on a nanostructured metallic surface with simple optics and sensing tunability. However, limited sensitivity coupled with a lack of sample handling capability makes it challenging to implement LSPR biosensing in cellular functional immunoanalysis based on cytokine secretion assay. This paper describes our recent progress towards full development of a label-free LSPR biosensing technique to detect cell-secreted tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α cytokines in clinical blood samples. We integrate LSPR bionanosensors in an optofluidic platform capable of handling target immune cells in a microfluidic chamber while readily permitting optical access for cytokine detection.

Date Published: 27 August 2014
PDF: 6 pages
Proc. SPIE 9166, Biosensing and Nanomedicine VII, 91660R (27 August 2014); doi: 10.1117/12.2062244

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9166:
Biosensing and Nanomedicine VII
Hooman Mohseni; Massoud H. Agahi; Manijeh Razeghi, Editor(s)