Kazuhiko Okita

A quick and easy method to detect the GDF-15 protein (Growth Differentiation Factor-15) has been developed, which utilize the magnetic response of magnetic nanoparticles by switching magnetic fields. The magnetic nanoparticles and GDF-15 are bound by an antigen-antibody reaction and aggregated into a spherical shape using a needle-shaped magnetic yoke. The density of GDF-15 changed as follows: 0, 1 ng/ml, 10 ng/ml, and 100 ng/ml. The increase of GDF-15 aggregated the magnetic nanoparticles and enhanced the signal-to-noise ratio. We also tried the sandwich-type bound method using a primary and secondary antibody with additional magnetic nanoparticles and obtained the enhancement of the magnetic signal in a lower concentration (under 10 ng/ml) of GDF-15. The cross-bridges between magnetic nanoparticle and the protein may strengthen the magnetic couplings of nanoparticles.