Determination of peanut allergen in foods using a dual fluorescence-SERS immunoassay

Peanut is one of the leading foods that can cause food allergies. An extremely low amount of peanut protein is sufficient to cause mild reactions in people who are sensitive to peanut. Over 90% of allergic reaction cases derived from peanut digestion are related to Ara h 1, a glycoprotein that comprises about 15% of the total protein content in peanut and are not degraded during food processing. In this project, we aim to develop a dual fluorescence-SERS immunoassay using graphene quantum dot labeling on aligned magnetoplasmonic nanowires. This immunoassay is expected to be more sensitive and selective to detect this allergen than the conventional immunoassay, with the fluorescence signal as a fast qualitative indicator and SERS signal as a further quantitative analysis.

Faculty Supervisor:

Keng Chou

Student:

Qian Liu

Partner:

NTBIO Diagnostics

Discipline:

Chemistry

Sector:

Life sciences

University:

University of British Columbia