Detection of an analyte in aqueous media

Process for the detection of an analyte in an aqueous solution in which a dye-labelled hapten-antihapten complex with the analyte is detected in a thin layer chromatography on a test strip, comprising

• aliquoting an aqueous solution comprising the sample into at least a first and a second vessel, wherein
• the first and the second vessel are adapted to receive test strips, the first vessel comprising a predetermined amount of analyte and predetermined amounts of at least two hapten-coupled receptors against the analyte, each embedded in glass-like trehalose layers, which have been dried onto the interior wall of the vessel,
• wherein the predetermined amount of analyte in said first vessel corresponds to a required detection limit, which is visible as a hapten-antihapten complex on the test strip;
• the second vessel also comprises equal predetermined amounts of at least two hapten-coupled receptors against the analyte, each embedded in glass-like trehalose layers which have been dried onto the interior wall of the vessel, and
• the test strips each comprise
• a strip-shaped carrier coated with a thin layer of a chromatographic separation material comprising
• a labelling zone impregnated with mobile reporter molecule-labelled antibodies or receptors against a first hapten;
• a detection zone, in which a receptor against a hapten has been immobilised;
• and
• a control zone, in which a second receptor against the mobile reporter molecule-labelled antibody or receptor has been immobilised,
• dissolving in the first and second vessel the trehalose layers with the predetermined amounts of at least two hapten-coupled receptors in the corresponding aliquot of the sample solution and producing conditions for the formation of a hapten-antihapten complex with the analyte, and
• detecting the hapten-antihapten complex in the sample solution through its dye-labelling and a thin layer chromatography using test strips, which are placed or dipped into the first and second vessels with the sample solution, by comparison of the coloured bands in the detection zones of the test strips from the first and second vessels.