Patent ID: 6613583
Filing Date: 2003-09-02
Classification: F16F,Y10S

Abstract:
A method of determining the presence of a chemical moiety, the method comprising(a) forming a reagent mixture containing the chemical moiety, or the chemical moiety and an agent which upon exposure of the reagent mixture to electrochemical energy forms either a reductant or an oxidant, said chemical moiety having the formula: â€ƒwherein: Mâ€² and Mâ€³ are independently selected from the group consisting of ruthenium and osmium; L1, L2, L3, and L4 each is a bidentate aromatic heterocyclic nitrogen-containing ligand selected from the group consisting of bipyridyl, substituted bipyridyl, bipyrazyl, substituted bipyrazyl, terpyridyl, substituted terpyridyl, phenanthrolyl and substituted phenanthrolyl, wherein each of said substituted ligands is substituted by an alkyl, aryl, aralkyl, carboxylate, carboxaldehyde, carboxamide, cyano, amino, hydroxycarbonyl, hydroxyamino, aminocarbonyl, amidine, guanidinium, ureide, sulfur-containing group, phosphorus-containing group, or the carboxylate ester of N-hydroxysuccinimide, each of said ligands being the same or not the same as each other ligand; P is a bridging ligand selected from the group consisting of dpp, bbpe, bphb, &agr;,&ohgr;-(2,2â€²-bipyrid-4-yl)-alkanes), 4,4â€²-bipyridines, and 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphine)ethane; B is a biological substance, a synthetic substance which is capable of competing with a biological substance in a competitive binding reaction with a complementary material, or a non-biological polymer; t is an integer equal to or greater than 1; u is an integer equal to or greater than 1; said link being covalent bonding linking B with at least one of L1, L2, L3, and L4; L1, L2, L3, L4, P and B being of such composition and number that the chemical moiety is capable of being induced to electrochemiluminesce; (b) exposing the reagent mixture to electrochemical energy the potential of which oscillates between a potential sufficiently positive to oxidize the chemical moiety and a potential sufficiently negative to reduce the chemical moiety, or to electrochemical energy such that said chemical moiety is oxidized and the agent forms a reductant, or such that said chemical moiety is reduced and the agent forms an oxidant, thereby to induce the chemical moiety to electrochemiluminesce; and (c) detecting emitted luminescence thereby to determine the presence of the chemical moiety.