Quantification of ricin toxin using a highly sensitive avidin/biotin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Abstract A more sensitive quantitative immunoassay system was required for the forensic determination of ricin in animal tissue samples. A competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) system has been previously described, with a maximum detection sensitivity of the order of Ing per 50 μ l of tissue extract. This study reports the development of a highly sensitive ELISA, amplified using the avidin/biotin immunoperoxidase complex (ABC). With this system, the lower limit of detection for ricin has been improved considerably to the order of 20 pg per 100 μ l of tissue extract. The method relies upon obtaining a solution of toxin by extracting tissue samples; the efficiency of this process is therefore critical for the success of the method. Extraction conditions have been examined and improved to maximise the opportunity for quantification of toxin.

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