Dried Blood Spot Sampling in Protein and Peptide Bioanalysis: Optimism, Experience, and the Path Forward

Dried blood spot (DBS) based microsampling is an emerging approach that requires a minimally invasive procedure. It is being increasingly used in metabolic screening, therapeutic drug monitoring, pharmacokinetic, diagnostic, pharmaco-toxicology and proteomic studies. DBS is a promising technique in clinical research due to its simplicity, convenience of storage and transportation, and compatibility with different analytical methods. Although DBS has been progressively established in numerous analytical domains concerning small molecules, it is still relatively less explored for peptides and proteins. Comprehensive literature discussing aspects of the usefulness of DBS sampling for protein and peptide bioanalysis is not reported in any literature till date. For the analysis of proteins and peptides, selection of a DBS card has a significant impact on analytical accuracy. This review specifically discusses recent technological advancements and difficulties associated with DBS sampling for proteins and peptides. Selective modifications on DBS cards for proteins and peptides have also been discussed. The assumptions and facts about use of DBS in comparison with traditional methods have been explained. While DBS has many benefits, certain difficulties associated with the technique can not be ignored. The article covers critical discussions on available DBS cards, extraction procedures, storage recommendations along with challenges and strategies to overcome them. Considering all the factors, it can be inferred that DBS bio-sampling need to go through more application based research and development before its effective application in clinical studies. However, it has all the potential to replace whole blood sampling approach in clinical applications in near future.