AFFINITY IMMUNOSENSOR FOR MILK PROGESTERONE - IDENTIFICATION OF CRITICAL PARAMETERS

The effects of several experimental parameters on the performance char acteristics of a competitive-type immunochromatographic assay of milk progesterone were studied. Increasing the size of the colloidal gold p articles used as a label increased both maximal signal obtained and se nsitivity of the assay measured as slope of the progesterone standard curve. The concentration of the antibody used to prepare the detection zone was found to be a critical factor, in that low concentrations of antibody resulted in a poor sensitivity. The compatibilities of vario us buffer systems with the assay were studied. The assay worked well w ith buffers having a broad pH range of 4.5 - 8.5. (C) 1996 Elsevier Sc ience Limited