Lateral Flow Immunoassay

Lateral flow test strips based on the principles of immunochromatography exist for a wide array of target analytes. The fist tests were made for the detection of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). Today, there are commercially available tests for ovulation monitoring, infectious disease detection, drugs of abuse analysis, and measuring other analytes important to human physiology. Products have also been introduced for testing, agricultural applications, environmental testing, and food & feed testing.

While the fist tests presented qualitative results based on the presence or absence of a signal line, test design has progressed toward semi-quantitative and quantitative assays and the integration of hand-held readers.