The Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) ELISA is a sensitive and robust immunoassay for the detection of the alcohol biomarker, PEth, extracted from dried blood spot (DBS) cards. Assay Sensitivity: 30 ng/mL Sample Volume: For duplicate data points, 50 µL of whole blood is required. Sample Type: detects PEth from whole blood spotted on a DBS (dried bloodspot) card. Background The Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) ELISA detects the alcohol biomarker, PEth, extracted from dried blood spot (DBS) cards. The assay is a competitive immunoassay where PEth in a sample extract competes with PEth on a plate for binding to a specific HRP-conjugated antibody. Thus, the assay signal is inversely proportional to the amount of PEth present in the sample. This assay is designed for dried blood spot card samples and uses 5 small 3.2 mm (1/8 inch) punches for running duplicate or triplicate measurements. The antibody recognizes all major PEth molecular species, providing researchers a quick and robust method to screen for positive/negative PEth in whole blood spotted DBS cards. PEth is a direct biomarker of alcohol ingestion formed in the blood only when ethanol has been consumed. It is specific and can report previous alcohol consumption beginning a few hours after a drinking event and continuing 2-3 weeks later. Sensitive detection by mass spectrometry using whole blood or dried blood spot (DBS) cards is becoming generally accepted as the gold-standard for detecting past alcohol consumption. The Echelon PEth ELISA is the first commercially available immunoassay for detection of PEth in blood.
