Patent ID: 7553620

Claim:
A method for determining a target polynucleotide, comprising: providing a support containing a plurality of separate detection regions, each of which contains a target polynucleotide to be determined which is neither directly nor indirectly bound to said support; contacting the target polynucleotide located in each of said detection regions with a labeled detection probe, with individual detection regions each containing different combinations of hybridizing target polynucleotide and labeled detection probe to form hybrid molecules between said target polynucleotide and said labeled detection probe; and determining hybridization of said target polynucleotide with said labeled detection probe by detecting reduced mobility of hybrid molecules containing target polynucleotide and labeled detection probe, compared with non-hybrid molecules, wherein said target polynucleotide is coupled to a non-immobilized microparticle having a size of ≦1 μm, wherein said non-immobilized microparticle remains in solution during determination of hybridization.