Assay for benzylpiperazine and metabolites
View Patent ↗The invention relates to the detection and quantification of 1-benzylpiperazine and its metabolites. The invention is underpinned by novel polyclonal antibodies with unique binding properties which enable immunoassay methods and kits for various applications.
1. An antibody derived from an immunogen having the general structure (I):
wherein accm is an antigenicity conferring carrier material; and crosslinker is a molecule attaching the accm to the aromatic ring moiety of the immunogen; and
wherein the antibody specifically recognizes 1-benzylpiperazine and wherein the antibody has at least 100% cross-reactivity with 4-OH benzylpiperazine and has less than 1% cross reactivity with 1-(3-chlorophenyl)piperazine (mCPP) as compared to 100% cross-reactivity with said 1-benzylpiperazine.
2. The antibody of claim 1 , wherein the antibody has an IC50 of: about 1 ng/ml for 1-benzylpiperazine (BZP), about 1 ng/ml for 4-OH benzylpiperazine (4-OH-BZP; p-OH-BZP), about 1 ng/ml for 3-(Piperazin-1ylmethyl)phenol, about 1 ng/ml for 1-Piperonylpiperazine, and about 3 ng/ml for N-(3-Methylbenzyl)piperazine.
3. The antibody of claim 1 , wherein the antibody has an IC50 of: at least 1.4 ng/ml for 1-benzylpiperazine (BZP), 0.813 ng/ml for 4-OH benzylpiperazine (4-OH-BZP; p-OH-BZP), 1.137 ng/ml for 3-(Piperazin-1ylmethyl)phenol, 1. 379 ng/ml for 1-Piperonylpiperazine, and about 2.646 ng/ml for N-(3-Methylbenzyl)piperazine.