A comparative study on EpCAM antibody immobilization on gold surfaces and microfluidic channels for the detection of circulating tumor cells

Publication date: April 2020Source: Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, Volume 188Author(s): Didem Cetin, Meltem Okan, Erhan Bat, Haluk KulahAbstractDetection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from the bloodstream holds great importance to diagnose cancer at early stages. However, CTCs being extremely rare in blood makes them difficult to reach. In this paper, we introduced different surface modification techniques for the enrichment and detection of MCF-7 in microfluidic biosensor applications using gold surface and EpCAM antibody. Mainly, two different mechanisms were employed to immobilize the antibodies; covalent bonding and bioaffinity interaction. Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) formed on the gold surfaces were treated further for the immobilization of the antibody. The bioaffinity-based studies were performed with streptavidin and biotinylated EpCAM over the SAM coated surfaces. The cell attachment events were monitored using fluorescent microscope. Comparisons were made considering the length and functional end of alkanethiols and the positioning of the antibody. Then, these methods were integrated into a microfluidic channel system. Surface characterizations were performed with X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy, and contact angle measurements. The selectivity studies were carried out with EpCAM negative K562 leukaemia cell lines and the experiments were repeated for different types of surfaces, such as glass and polymer. Studies showed th...
Source: Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces - Category: Biochemistry Source Type: research