Premium
Evaluation of quantum dot immunofluorescence and a digital CMOS imaging system as an alternative to conventional organic fluorescence dyes and laser scanning for quantifying protein microarrays
Author(s) -
Jain Aarti,
Taghavian Omid,
Vallejo Derek,
Dotsey Emmanuel,
Schwartz Dan,
Bell Florian G.,
Greef Chad,
Davies D. Huw,
Grudzien Jennipher,
Lee Abraham P.,
Felgner Philip L.,
Liang Li
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
proteomics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.26
H-Index - 167
eISSN - 1615-9861
pISSN - 1615-9853
DOI - 10.1002/pmic.201500375
Subject(s) - protein microarray , immunofluorescence , cyanine , materials science , hyperspectral imaging , fluorescence , quantum dot , streptavidin , laser , dna microarray , optoelectronics , chemistry , optics , antibody , biology , biochemistry , gene expression , physics , remote sensing , biotin , immunology , gene , geology
Organic fluorescent dyes are widely used for the visualization of bound antibody in a variety of immunofluorescence assays. However, the detection equipment is often expensive, fragile, and hard to deploy widely. Quantum dots (Qdot) are nanocrystals made of semiconductor materials that emit light at different wavelengths according to the size of the crystal, with increased brightness and stability. Here, we have evaluated a small benchtop “personal” optical imager (ArrayCAM) developed for quantification of protein arrays probed by Qdot‐based indirect immunofluorescence. The aim was to determine if the Qdot imager system provides equivalent data to the conventional organic dye‐labeled antibody/laser scanner system. To do this, duplicate proteome microarrays of Vaccinia virus, Brucella melitensis and Plasmodium falciparum were probed with identical samples of immune sera, and IgG, IgA, and IgM profiles visualized using biotinylated secondary antibodies followed by a tertiary reagent of streptavidin coupled to either P3 (an organic cyanine dye typically used for microarrays) or Q800 (Qdot). The data show excellent correlation for all samples tested ( R > 0.8) with no significant change of antibody reactivity profiles. We conclude that Qdot detection provides data equivalent to that obtained using conventional organic dye detection. The portable imager offers an economical, more robust, and deployable alternative to conventional laser array scanners.