Chapter 24
Diagnostic Applications
of Phycobiliproteins
Annadurai Vinothkanna and Soundarapandian Sekar
Abstract Phycobiliproteins (PBPs) are widely used as fluorescent detection system
in both medical and non-medical diagnostics. This chapter focuses research arena
with extensive coverage of patents and commercial products. Being unique and brilliantly colored proteinaceous photosynthetic accessory pigments of algal kingdom,
they were mainly employed in the diagnosis of human metabolic disorders, infectious diseases, cancers, and immune disorders. It was further extended to the prognosis of few human diseases too. They find novel applications in human theranostics
either as fluorescent detection component or both as detection system and therapeutic
molecule. Apart from medical diagnosis, they were largely used in the diagnosis of
cell components, cell lineages and subsets, and other biological and environmental
probing too. It was further extended to the diagnosis of pathogenic diseases in birds
and mammals. There are available extensive patented research on the development
of methods of using them as detection probes in the form of molecular tags, protein
conjugates, fusion proteins, antibody conjugates, and with DNA probes. Their incorporation into micro beads, magnetic beads, and biochips were elaborate. Globally,
several companies market diagnostic products of PBPs in the form of preparations
like streptavidin conjugates, activated PBPs, fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) crosslinked forms, purified and activated forms, antibody conjugates, and as multi-color
detection systems including custom designing. Among various phycobiliproteins,
phycoerythrins find common application followed by allophycocyanin and phycocyanin. Generation of novel hybrids and conjugates coupled with improvement in
signal generation and amplification that helps in early diagnosis are in the offing.
Keywords Phycoerythrin · Allophycocyanin · Phycocyanin · Fluorochrome ·
Fluorescent detection · Diagnostic patents
A. Vinothkanna · S. Sekar (B)
Department of Biotechnology, Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli 620024, Tamil Nadu,
India
e-mail: sekarbiotech@yahoo.com; sekarbiotech@bdu.ac.in
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E. Jacob-Lopes et al. (eds.), Pigments from Microalgae Handbook,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50971-2_24
585
Diagnostic Applications
of Phycobiliproteins
Annadurai Vinothkanna and Soundarapandian Sekar
Abstract Phycobiliproteins (PBPs) are widely used as fluorescent detection system
in both medical and non-medical diagnostics. This chapter focuses research arena
with extensive coverage of patents and commercial products. Being unique and brilliantly colored proteinaceous photosynthetic accessory pigments of algal kingdom,
they were mainly employed in the diagnosis of human metabolic disorders, infectious diseases, cancers, and immune disorders. It was further extended to the prognosis of few human diseases too. They find novel applications in human theranostics
either as fluorescent detection component or both as detection system and therapeutic
molecule. Apart from medical diagnosis, they were largely used in the diagnosis of
cell components, cell lineages and subsets, and other biological and environmental
probing too. It was further extended to the diagnosis of pathogenic diseases in birds
and mammals. There are available extensive patented research on the development
of methods of using them as detection probes in the form of molecular tags, protein
conjugates, fusion proteins, antibody conjugates, and with DNA probes. Their incorporation into micro beads, magnetic beads, and biochips were elaborate. Globally,
several companies market diagnostic products of PBPs in the form of preparations
like streptavidin conjugates, activated PBPs, fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) crosslinked forms, purified and activated forms, antibody conjugates, and as multi-color
detection systems including custom designing. Among various phycobiliproteins,
phycoerythrins find common application followed by allophycocyanin and phycocyanin. Generation of novel hybrids and conjugates coupled with improvement in
signal generation and amplification that helps in early diagnosis are in the offing.
Keywords Phycoerythrin · Allophycocyanin · Phycocyanin · Fluorochrome ·
Fluorescent detection · Diagnostic patents
A. Vinothkanna · S. Sekar (B)
Department of Biotechnology, Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli 620024, Tamil Nadu,
India
e-mail: sekarbiotech@yahoo.com; sekarbiotech@bdu.ac.in
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E. Jacob-Lopes et al. (eds.), Pigments from Microalgae Handbook,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50971-2_24
585