An evaluation of four different luminescence immunoassay systems: CELIA (chemiluminescent immunoassay), SPALT (solid-phase antigen luminescence technique), ILMA (immunoluminometric assay) and ILSA (immunoluminometric labelled second antibody). A critical study of macro solid phases for use in immunoassay systems, Part III.

The performance of different solid-phase luminescence immunoassays has been documented using four different assay concepts. These are CELIA (chemiluminescence immunoassay), SPALT (solid-phase antigen luminescence technique), ILMA (immunoluminometric assay) and ILSA (immunoluminometric labelled second-antibody assay). CELIA is analogous to a solid-phase radioimmunoassay and uses a labelled antigen, SPALT and ILSA use a labelled second (species-specific) antibody and ILMA a labelled substance-specific antibody, i.e. analogous to the immunoradiometric assay. Both bioluminescent and chemiluminescent labels have been used. Pyruvate kinase was used for bioluminescence and diazoluminol and N-(4-amino-butyl)-N-ethyl isoluminol hemisuccinamide for chemiluminescence. Relevant quality-control parameters and reference ranges have been given for the optimised assays. Assays described are: thyroxine, thyroxine binding globulin, cortisol, caeruloplasmin, ferritin and C-reactive protein. Luminescence immunoassays with coefficients of variation comparable with radioimmunoassay have been designed, values of under 5% being obtainable within the working range of the assay.