Urine & Diagnosis

What substances can urine contain?

Water urea mineral salts hormones toxins and breakdown products

What can glucose in urine indicate?

Diabetes

What can elevated creatinine levels in urine suggest?

Muscle or kidney damage

What can blood or proteins in urine indicate?

Kidney disorders

Why are urine tests useful for diagnosis?

They allow diseases to be diagnosed and monitored without invasive procedures

What is hCG?

Human chorionic gonadotropin

Where is hCG produced?

By the placenta after an embryo implants into the uterus

What does the presence of hCG in urine indicate?

Pregnancy

What do modern pregnancy tests use to detect hCG?

Monoclonal antibodies

What are monoclonal antibodies?

Antibodies from a single clone of identical cells that target a particular substance

What happens when urine containing hCG reaches the pregnancy test?

Mobile monoclonal antibodies bind to hCG

What is formed when monoclonal antibodies bind to hCG?

An antibody-hCG complex

What carries the antibody-hCG complex to the test window?

Urine

What happens at the test window during a positive pregnancy test?

Immobilised monoclonal antibodies bind to the antibody-hCG complex

What indicates a positive pregnancy test?

A coloured line or symbol such as a plus sign

What is the function of the control line on a pregnancy test?

To confirm the test is working

What appears on a pregnancy test if the person is not pregnant?

Only the control line

Why can urine be used to detect drugs?

Drugs and their breakdown products are filtered through the kidneys and can be present in urine

What can urine drug tests detect?

Drugs or their breakdown products

What is an immunoassay?

A test where monoclonal antibodies bind to a substance to indicate its presence

What technique separates components of a urine sample?

Gas chromatography

What technique identifies molecular structures in a urine sample?

Mass spectrometry

What is done to a urine sample before gas chromatography?

It is vaporised with a known solvent

What is the purpose of gas chromatography in drug testing?

To separate the components of the sample

What is the purpose of mass spectrometry in drug testing?

To identify the molecular structures of the separated components