An immunoassay is a biochemical test that measures the presence or concentration of a macromolecule in a solution through the use of an antibody or immunoglobulin.
Immunoassays may be qualitative (positive or negative) or quantitative (amount measured). An example of a qualitative assay is an immunoassay test for pregnancy. Pregnancy tests detect the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in urine or serum. Highly purified antibodies can detect pregnancy within two days of fertilization. Immunoassays are highly sensitive and specific. Their high specificity results from the use of antibodies and purified antigens as reagents. An antibody is a protein (immunoglobulin) produced by B-lymphocytes (immune cells) in response to stimulation by an antigen. An immunoassay is a biochemical test that measures the presence or concentration of a macromolecule in a solution through the use of an antibody or immunoglobulin. The macromolecule detected by the immunoassay is often referred to as an  analyte  and is in many cases a protein. Immunoassays rely on the ability of an antibody to recognize and bind a specific macromolecule in what might be a complex mixture of macromolecules. In immunology the particular macromolecule bound by an antibody is referred to as an antigen and the area on an antigen to which the antibody binds is called an epitope. In some cases an immunoassay may use an antigen to detect for the presence of antibodies, which recognize that antigen, in a solution. In other words, in some immunoassays, the analyte may be an antibody rather than an antige ELISA is a popular format of wet-lab type analytic biochemistry assay that uses a solid-phase enzyme immunoassay (EIA) to detect the presence of a substance, usually an antigen, in a liquid sample or wet sample. Medical Definition of IMMUNOASSAY. : a technique or test (as the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) used to detect the presence or quantity of a substance (as a protein) based on its capacity to act as an antigen or antibody. — immunoassay transitive verb. — im·mu·no·as·say·able \-a-ˈsā-ə-bəl\ adjective. Definition of IMMUNOASSAY. : a technique or test used to detect the presence or quantity of a substance (as a protein) based on its capacity to act as an antigen. — im·mu·no·as·say·able \-a-ˈsā-ə-bəl\ adjective. ADVERTISEMENT. noun im·mu·no·as·say \ˌim-yə-nō-ˈas-ˌā, im-ˌyue-ˌyü-, -nō-a\. ˈsā Immunoassay Urine Drug Test (UDT) page 1 of 1 The immunoassay UDT is designed as a quick or rapid screening test. The results of the immunoassay UDT are NOT routinely confirmed for the specific presence of any drug(s), unless otherwise requested. en·zyme im·mu·no·as·say. any of several immunoassay methods that use an enzyme covalently linked to an antigen or antibody as a label; the most common types are enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and enzyme-multiplied immunoassay technique (EMIT). Immunoassay Analyzer. An immunoassay analyzer is used in hospital and clinical laboratories to run automated biochemical tests to detect the presence and concentration of substances in the samples. Definition. Immunoassays are chemical tests used to detect or quantify a specific substance, the analyte, in a blood or body fluid sample, using an immunological reaction. Immunoassays are highly sensitive and specific. Their high specificity results from the use of antibodies and purified antigens as reagents. An antibody is a protein (immunoglobulin) produced by B-lymphocytes (immune cells) in response to stimulation by an antigen.
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what is an immunoassay