Biomarkers for Stress Levels Measured on Automatic Platform

Two substances in the saliva can be indicative of stress levels in people under pressure.

Salivary immunoglobulin (IgA) and cortisol, levels can be measured in an automatic liquid handling system based on enzyme immunoassays. Cortisol is a corticosteroid hormone and IgA is an antibody that plays a critical role in mucosal immunity. The levels of these two biomarkers can be correlated with the degrees of stress a person is suffering.

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for IgA and cortical, the "stress” hormone, are being performed using the Tecan automated liquid handling platform (Tecan Switzerland AG; Männedorf, Switzerland). Psychologists have been using the system to explore stress levels and the immune system at Anglia Ruskin University (Cambridge, UK).

One recent project looked at caregivers of people with dementia, and it was discovered that the long-term chronic stress they experience tends to raise levels of IgA. At the other extreme, a number of volunteers were followed through their first tandem parachute jump, looking at progressive increases in salivary cortisol before the event, and the effect this has on the immune system's reaction.

The Tecan platform to automate ELISAs considerably increases daily throughput from a maximum of 100 samples manually, to over 600 on the Tecan system. The system has a positive identification scanner for barcode recognition, and it is linked to software for tracking, database integration and printing, offering full automation of the whole process.

The scalable Tecan Freedom EV liquid handling workstations are capable of handling a variety of automated microplate tests including ELISAs, enzyme immunoassays (EIAs), radio immunoassays (RIA) without detection, fluorescence immunoassays (FIA), and heterogeneous and homogenous assay types; any assay requiring incubation, washing and reading steps. Modules can be seamlessly integrated onto the workstations and controlled by Freedom EVOwarePlus dynamic scheduling software enabling hands-free automation, from distribution of the sample to detection of the assay signal.

Related Links:
Tecan Switzerland AG
Anglia Ruskin University