A Novel Near Infrared Spectroscopy Based Device for Albumin Estimation

In this paper we have proposed a fluorescence based spectroscopy device which can be used to quantitatively estimate the amount of albumin that gets excreted out of our body. Albumin is a significant protein in bio-fluids and performs a wide range of metabolic functions. The dye that has been used as a fluorescent indicator for the presence of albumin in this study has been earlier tested with bovine serum albumin (BSA) and human serum albumin (HSA) with satisfactory results. The method is based on principle of fluorescence in near infrared range (NIR) of 700 to 850 nm by using a novel dye with the test mixture. The chosen near infrared range has a benefit of absence of the auto fluorescence of the bio-molecules present in urine other than the albumin molecules. The system consists of: light source, spectroscopic chamber, sensing and computational unit. The study shows the stability and reproducibility of device so as to avoid fluctuations of voltage and other undesirables. The optimization with bovine serum albumin and human serum albumin has been done and the device can sense as low as 100 nM concentration precisely and accurately.Clinical Relevance—The system being presented is intended for developing a low cost point of care testing device for determining albumin concentration in urine.