Assay device for liquid sample

Disclosed is an assay device comprising liquid transport means adapted to take up a liquid sample and conduct the liquid to an analyte detection region operable to provide a test signal indicative of the presence and/or amount of an analyte in the liquid sample; the assay device further comprising a sample presence signal generation means, which is not generated by means of an immunoreaction. This sample presence signal generation means can comprise a coloured portion, which is overlead by a material (e.g. nitrocellulose) that is opaque, when dry, and translucent or transparent, when wet, to allow the coloured portion to become visible to the user. In another embodiment the signal generation means comprises a colour changing material which undergoes a change in its visible properties upon wetting (eg. pH indication). A third embodiment uses a mobilisable detectable material which, when wetted by the sample, is carried along resulting in a streaked line parallel with the flow direction.