Figure 1.

Principle of the POCube system. POCube is a fully automated chemiluminescence analyzer. In the H5/A kit, two Abs were incorporated, namely, one for H5 HA and the other for type A NP antigens of the influenza virus. One of the Abs is biotinylated and the other is conjugated to ALP. A sample is loaded into a reservoir tank in the cartridge, which is placed in the machine along with two reaction vessels. When the complex of antigen and two Abs is formed, it is trapped on an anti-biotin Ab-coated membrane in the reaction vessels. The membrane is then washed, a luminescent substrate for ALP is added, and the emitted luminescence is measured. Using the appropriate program, POCube automatically performs each of these steps, and the result is displayed as either positive or negative. Alternatively, the luminescence counts can be provided, if preferred.