Isolation and detection of target cells in blood <i>via</i> immunomagnetic separation and atomic emission spectroscopy

The identification and quantification of cells in blood can serve to inform disease diagnosis and prognosis for patients. However, sample complexity presents a challenge for achieving sensitive and specific detection methods. Furthermore, there is a need to alleviate current standard clinical protocols from operator burden, limit the required sample volumes, and to reduce analysis timescales, all while maintaining sensitivity. This study presents a novel atomic emission cytometry assay for the detection of cells in blood with high specificity and sensitivity (LOD = 84 cells per μL), requiring only 500 μL sample volume and 1 hour of combined processing and analysis time, exhibiting the potential for broad applications in disease diagnosis. Metal nanoparticles equipped with antibodies serve as a targeted cell labeling platform, as well as an integrated method for immunomagnetic separation and subsequent quantification <i>via</i> microwave plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (MP-AES) analysis. This assay can also be modified to include multiple types of metal-based nanoparticles and/or target multiple cell surface markers for simultaneous detection of different cell populations within the same sample. The simplicity, specificity, and efficiency of this assay mark it as a viable integrated diagnostic platform for cellular-based disease diagnosis.