Patent ID: 7407768

Claim:
A method for assaying an interaction between an antibody test agent and a lipid bilayer-associated component, comprising: providing a surface detector array device comprising (i) a substrate having a surface defining a plurality of distinct bilayer-compatible surface regions separated by one or more bilayer barrier regions, said bilayer-compatible surface regions and said bilayer barrier regions being formed of different materials, and (ii) a plurality of lipid bilayer expanses localized above said plurality of distinct bilayer-compatible surface regions, wherein said lipid bilayer expanses are localized above said surface regions in the absence of covalent linkages between said lipid bilayer expanses and said bilayer-compatible surface regions, and are separated therefrom by an aqueous film interposed between said bilayer-compatible surface regions and said corresponding lipid bilayer expanses, the lipid bilayer expanses having a component associated with the lipid bilayer expanse; contacting said device with a bulk aqueous phase comprising the antibody test agent that specifically binds to the lipid bilayer-associated component, whereby the membrane fluidity of at least one of the plurality of lipid bilayer expanses changes when said antibody test agent binds to said lipid bilayer-associated component; evaluating the membrane fluidity of one or more of said lipid bilayer expanses, and detecting binding of the antibody test agent to the lipid bilayer-associated component by correlating a change in membrane fluidity to binding.