Solvent mediated relaxation assay system
AssigneeAdvanced Magnetics, Inc.
InventorsLee Josephson, Edward T. Menz, Ernest V. Groman
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A new ligand binding assay is based upon measurements of relaxation rates of the solvent, which are obtained with a magnetic resonance (MR) spectrometer. It is termed a solvent mediated relaxation assay system (SMRAS). SMRAS is based on the observation that the enhancement of proton relaxation rates produced by a magnetic material can be modulated by the binding of various analytes to a magnetic material. Hence the relaxation rate of the solvent can be interpreted to give information on the concentration of an analyte.
Claims17
A method, of assaying the concentration of an analyte in a solvent "in vitro", comprising:
- providing a magnetic material having positive magnetic susceptibility to alter the relaxation characteristics of the solvent nuclei of a component included in the solvent, such relaxation characteristics obtained by a magnetic resonance technique, the magnetic material being selected so that its effect, on the relaxation of the nuclei of the component included in the solvent, is modified by the interaction of the analyte with the magnetic material;
- causing the magnetic material and the analyte to be located in the solvent;
- allowing the magnetic material to interact with the analyte;
- and
- measuring the relaxation characteristics of the nuclei of the component by a magnetic resonance technique.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.