Patent ID: 7205160

Claim:
A method for the analysis of a sample to simultaneously yet individually detect antibodies of different immunoglobulin classes that have a single common antigen specificity, said method comprising: Contacting said sample with a first solid phase coated with said antigen to cause said antibodies in said sample to bind to said antigen; washing said first solid phase to isolate said antibodies from unbound species; suspending said first solid phase thus washed in a liquid suspending medium and releasing said antibodies from said antigen-coated first solid phase into said medium to form a supernatant containing unbound antibodies of different immunoglobulin classes that are specific to said antigen; isolating said supernatant from said first solid phase and contacting said supernatant with a second solid phase, said second solid phase comprising one or more portions each coated with an immunological binding member with specific binding affinity for a single immunoglobulin class, and each portion being capable of differentiation from other such portions; and individually detecting the occurrence of immunological binding between said immunoglobulin classes and said immunological binding members while differentiating between said portions.