Development of magnetic particle-based chemiluminescence immunoassay for measurement of human procalcitonin in serum

Background: Serum procalcitonin (PCT) has been recognized as a primary biomarker in bacterial infections, and monitoring its concentration could help to evaluate the prognosis of sepsis and guide the antibiotic administration. We aimed to establish a fast and accurate immunoassay for PCT quantitation. Methods: Our newly developed monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against human PCT were preliminarily evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and then used to develop a chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay (CLEIA). The proposed CLEIA was assessed in analytical performance and applied to measurement of serum PCT. Results: mAb 2D3 and mAb 8F6 were selected as capture and detection antibody respectively, due to the highest sensitivity for PCT detection with no cross reaction to calcitonin gene-related peptides. The proposed CLEIA based on mAb pair of 2D3/8F6-AP was characterized for a working range from 0.03 to 100 mu g/L. An excellent correlation was observed between our proposed assay and the VIDAS BRAHMS PCT assay (r: 0.9825). Conclusion: Our newly developed mAbs and CLEIA can serve as important diagnostic tools for measurement of human PCT in serum.

Automated summary

The study aimed to establish a fast and accurate immunoassay for PCT quantitation using newly developed monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay (CLEIA). Results showed that the proposed CLEIA had excellent analytical performance and correlation with existing PCT assay methods, indicating its potential as an important diagnostic tool for measuring human PCT in serum.