CORE ELEMENTS FOR POINT OF CARE DIAGNOSIS OF TUBERCULOSIS

摘要

The invention provides a method of diagnosing tuberculosis by using a novel antibody biomarker capturing vehicle activating a screen-printed electrode using chemical and mechanical polishing and immobilising mycolic acid antigen biomarkers on the activated electrode. The novel antibody biomarker capturing vehicle is produced by introducing isolated mycolic acid antigens of tuberculous mycobacterial origin onto an outer surface of a nanoparticle such that the mycolic acid antigens are presented as antibody biomarker capturing agents. The solvent resistant screen-printed electrode is activated by both chemically and mechanically polishing the electrode. The mycolic acid antigens are immobilised on the activated electrode by incubating the activated electrode with a mycolic acid-dimethylformamide solution to allow mycolic acid antigens to adsorb onto the activated electrode.