Automated imatinib immunoassay.

Imatinib pharmacokinetic variability and the relationship of trough concentrations with clinical outcomes have been extensively reported. Though physical methods to quantitate imatinib exist, they are not widely available for routine use. An automated homogenous immunoassay for imatinib has been developed, facilitating routine imatinib testing.Imatinib-selective monoclonal antibodies, without substantial cross-reactivity to the N-desmethyl metabolite or N-desmethyl conjugates, were produced. The antibodies were conjugated to 200 nm particles to develop immunoassay reagents on the Beckman Coulter AU480™ analyzer. These reagents were analytically validated using Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute protocols. Method comparison to LC-MS/MS was conducted using 77 plasma samples collected from subjects receiving imatinib.The assay requires 4 µL of sample without pre-treatment. The non-linear calibration curve ranges from 0 to 3,000 ng/mL. With automated sample dilution, concentrations of up to 9,000 ng/mL can be quantitated. The AU480 produces the first result in 10 minutes, and up to 400 tests per hour. Repeatability ranged from 2.0 to 6.0% coefficient of variation (CV), and within-laboratory reproducibility ranged from 2.9 to 7.4% CV. Standard curve stability was two weeks and on-board reagent stability was 6 weeks. For clinical samples with imatinib concentrations from 438 - 2,691 ng/mL, method comparison with LC-MS/MS gave a slope of 0.995 with a y-intercept of 24.3 and a correlation coefficient of 0.978.The immunoassay is suitable for quantitating imatinib in human plasma, demonstrating good correlation with a physical method. Testing for optimal imatinib exposure can now be performed on routine clinical analyzers.