Determination of urinary iron by colorimetric detection with a novel microfluidic paper-based analytical device

Iron is one of the most studied micronutrients in the world, since it plays several important roles in the human body, such as transport, storage and use of oxygen and DNA synthesis. Both deficient and overload of this metal can cause severe damages like anemia, hemochromatosis, cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, which is why its metabolism is very tightly regulated. Nowadays, urinary iron is mostly determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma, but this technique requires costly and complex equipment. Because, there is still a part of the world population that doesn’t has an easy access to the basic healthcare, the development of practical and affordable devices and techniques is essential. Microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (μPADs) are a recently developed platform used to perform analytical determinations in a simple, inexpensive, portable way. Furthermore, μPADs are rapid, disposable, and after being assemble don’t require complex equipment or specialized personal to do the measurement, which makes them and interesting tool to be used in on-site analysis in locations of difficult access or with very few resources. The focus of this work was to design a new μPAD for the quantification of iron in human urine samples. This device could ultimately be used as a screening option not only in healthcare facilities, but also to aid in the diagnosis of some diseases and health conditions in remote locations.