Lateral flow assays, also known as lateral flow immunoassays, are rapid, portable, and low-cost diagnostic tools that are widely used for point-of-care testing. They use a strip-based format to detect the presence or absence of specific analytes, such as proteins, viruses, or bacteria, in a sample. lateral flow assays have historically featured a striped capture antibody line and a detection antibody conjugated to a gold nanoparticle. The capture and detection antibodies form a sandwich around the target antigen, and the captured nanoparticle yields a coloured signal at the test line. Lateral flow assays are simple to use, require minimal training, and do not require specialized equipment, making them a valuable tool for disease diagnosis and monitoring in resource-limited settings.
The presence of the antigen target (green) will generate a signal at the test line.