Patent ID: 7229771

Claim:
A method for the detection of an analyte in a sample, comprising the steps: (a) preparing a solid phase on which a preformed conjugate of a poly(C 2 -C 3 )-alkylene oxide and an analyte-specific reactant that interacts with the analyte has been applied such that the preformed conjugate is immobilized in a test area on the solid phase, (b) incubating the sample with the solid phase and a detection reagent that provides a detectable indication of the presence or/and amount of the analyte, such that any analyte in the sample binds to the reactant bound to the solid phase and (c) detecting the presence or/and the amount of the analyte in the sample with the detectable indication, wherein the solid phase is coated with a first member of a high affinity binding pair and said preformed conjugate is immobilized via said high affinity binding pair, wherein said analyte specific reactant in said preformed conjugate is conjugated with a second member of said high affinity binding pair prior to application of said preformed conjugate to said solid phase.