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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lateral flow test | 1/3 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral_flow_test | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T07:29:56.678548+00:00 | kb-cron |
A lateral flow test (LFT), is an assay also known as a lateral flow immunochromatographic test (ICT). It is a simple device intended to detect the presence of a target substance in a liquid sample without the need for specialized and costly equipment. LFTs are widely used in medical diagnostics in the home, at the point of care, and in the laboratory. For instance, the home pregnancy test is an LFT that detects a specific hormone. These tests are simple and economical and generally show results in around five to thirty minutes. Many lab-based applications increase the sensitivity of simple LFTs by employing additional dedicated equipment. Many LFTs are called rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), though this term also includes other formats such as the vertical-flow tests. LFTs operate on the same principles of affinity chromatography as the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). In essence, these tests run the liquid sample along the surface of a pad with reactive molecules that show a visual positive or negative result. The pads are based on a series of capillary beds, such as pieces of porous paper, microstructured polymer, or sintered polymer. Each of these pads has the capacity to transport fluid (e.g., urine, blood, saliva) spontaneously. The sample pad acts as a sponge and holds an excess of sample fluid. Once soaked, the fluid flows to the second conjugate pad in which the manufacturer has stored freeze dried bio-active particles called conjugates (see below) in a salt–sugar matrix. The conjugate pad contains all the reagents required for an optimized chemical reaction between the target molecule (e.g., an antigen) and its chemical partner (e.g., antibody) that has been immobilized on the particle's surface. This marks target particles as they pass through the pad and continue across to the test and control lines. The test line shows a signal, often a color as in pregnancy tests. The control line contains affinity ligands which show whether the sample has flowed through and the bio-molecules in the conjugate pad are active. After passing these reaction zones, the fluid enters the final porous material, the wick, that simply acts as a waste container. LFTs can operate as either competitive or sandwich assays. Because the target substance is often a biological antigen, many lateral flow tests are rapid antigen tests (RAT or ART).
== History == LFTs derive from paper chromatography, which was developed in 1943 by Martin and Synge, and elaborated in 1944 by Consden, Gordon and Martin. There was an explosion of activity in this field after 1945. The ELISA technology was developed in 1971. A set of LFT patents, including the litigated US 6,485,982 described below, were filed by Armkel LLC starting in 1988. The first commercially available lateral flow device was Unipath's Clearblue One Step in 1988. This product combined Paired Monoclonal Antibody technology (patented in 1980 by Unipath's Prof. Philip Porter and colleagues including Paul Davis and Keith May) and the original Clearblue product launched in June 1985.
== Synopsis ==
=== Colored particles === In principle, any colored particle can be used, but latex (blue color) or nanometer-sized particles of gold (red color) are most commonly used. The gold particles are red in color due to localized surface plasmon resonance. Fluorescent or magnetic labelled particles can also be used, but these require the use of an electronic reader to assess the test result.
=== Mechanisms ===
==== Sandwich assays ====
Sandwich assays are generally used for larger analytes (antigens) because they tend to have multiple binding sites. As the sample migrates through the assay it first encounters a conjugate, which is an antibody specific to the target analyte labelled with a visual tag, usually colloidal gold. The antibodies bind to the target analyte within the sample and migrate together until they reach the test line. The test line also contains immobilized antibodies specific to the target analyte, which bind to the migrated analyte bound conjugate molecules. The test line then presents a visual change due to the concentrated visual tag, hence confirming the presence of the target molecules. The majority of sandwich assays also have a control line which will appear whether or not the target analyte is present to ensure proper function of the lateral flow pad. The rapid, low-cost sandwich-based assay is commonly used for home pregnancy tests which detect human chorionic gonadotropin, hCG, in the urine of pregnant women.
==== Competitive assays ==== Competitive assays are generally used for smaller analytes since smaller analytes have fewer binding sites. The sample first encounters antibodies to the target analyte labelled with a visual tag (colored particles). The test line contains the target analyte fixed to the surface. When the target analyte is absent from the sample, unbound antibody will bind to these fixed analyte molecules, meaning that a visual marker will show. Conversely, when the target analyte is present in the sample, it binds to the antibodies to prevent them binding to the fixed analyte in the test line, and thus no visual marker shows. This differs from sandwich assays in that no band means the analyte is present.
==== Alternative binding mechanisms ==== The LFT principle works with any collection of molecules that bind to each other with high affinity, so long as some of them can be immobilized to the gold nanoparticles and the test line respectively. For example:
A sandwich LFT that looks for antibodies reactive against a certain antigen is made by replacing the antibody on test line and color particles with the target antigen. A sandwich LFT that looks for nucleic acids conjugated to biotin and digoxigenin (DIG) uses anti-DIG antibodies on the gold nanoparticle and streptavidin on the test line. A sandwich LFT that looks for the SARS-Cov-2 spike protein uses anti-spike llama nanobodies on the gold nanoparticle, ACE2 on the test line, and anti-llama antibodies on the control line.
=== Control line ===