Patent ID: 6063637
Filing Date: 2000-05-16
Classification: A61B,G01N,Y10T

Abstract:
A system for measuring the concentration of target molecules in solution, comprising:(a) a sensing material comprising metal complexes having at least two coordination sites available for binding at least one of the target molecules selected from the group consisting of a sugar, a monosaccharide, a disaccharide, a trisaccharide, an oligosaccharide, an amino sugar, a sugar-amino acid, an amino acid, an amino alcohol, an .alpha.-hydroxycarboxylic acid, a sugar-peptide, a glycoprotein, glycerol, dopamine, a catechol, ascorbic acid, a polyol, a diol, ethyleneglycol, sialic acid, carbonate, phosphate, sulfate, CO, NO, 3-hydroxy-L-tyrosine, and a molecule having multiple hydroxyl groups, the metal complexes releasing protons or hydroxide ions upon binding of the target molecules; and(b) a detector for measuring the protons or hydroxide ions released from the sensing material and for providing a measurement of the concentration of the target molecules in the solution,wherein the detector is selected from the group consisting of a pH electrode, a field effect transistor, a light addressable potentiometric sensor, and a solution conductivity measuring device, orwherein the detector measures optical or electrical characteristics of the sample and the system further comprises a chemical probe whose optical or electrical properties are sensitive to pH.