Patent ID: 8778667

Claim:
A method for detecting an interaction of at least one first biologically relevant molecule with a carrier on which at least one second biologically relevant molecule is immobilized, the method comprising: (A) causing an interaction of the at least one second biologically relevant molecule on the carrier with the at least one first biologically relevant molecule, which has been fluorescence-labeled, in a reaction solution through insertion of a carrier-supporting member, on which is mounted the carrier upon which the at least one second biologically relevant molecule is immobilized, into a hollow holder having an open part at one end with a second end being closed and comprising the reaction solution; (B) washing the carrier by removing biologically relevant molecules that have not interacted with the at least one second biologically relevant molecule immobilized on the carrier; and (C) detecting fluorescence via irradiation of the carrier with excitation light with a detector, wherein: while the carrier-supporting member is being inserted into the hollow holder, a rear-end portion of the carrier-supporting member is engaged with an edge of the open part of the hollow holder, so that the hollow holder is sealed and positions of the carrier-supporting member and the hollow holder are determined; a left area, left of an axial center of the hollow holder, and a right area, right of the axial center of the hollow holder, which are defined by an inner side of the hollow holder and an external side of the carrier-supporting member on which the carrier is mounted, are approximately the same within a region from a carrier-mounting part to an apical part of the carrier-supporting member, as in a section cut along a plane including the axial center of the hollow holder in a positioned state; the carrier-mounting part is disposed on a surface between a rear-end of the carrier-supporting member and the apical part of the carrier-supporting member; and the carrier-mounting part of the carrier-supporting member is a concave portion having a bottom face and side faces, and the carrier is disposed on the bottom face of the concave portion.