Claims
- 1. A carrier particle comprising a polymeric microparticle and at least one nanoparticle of at least one nanoparticle population coupled with said polymeic microparticle, wherein said at least one nanoparticle has a diameter in the range of 10-1,000 nm.
- 2. The carrier particle of claim 1 wherein at least one nanoparticle of said at least one nanoparticle population includes a surface which allows attachment of functional groups thereto.
- 3. A carrier particle comprising a polymeric microparticle wherein said polymeric microparticle includes a plurality of nanoparticles of at least one nanoparticle population coupled with said polymeric microparticle.
- 4. The carrier particle of claim 3 wherein said microparticle includes a plurality of nanoparticles of at least two nanoparticle populations coupled with said microparticle.
- 5. The carrier particle of claim 4 wherein said nanoparticles of said at least two nanoparticle populations are stained with different dyes.
- 6. The carrier particle of claim 5 wherein said different dyes are different fluorescent dyes.
- 7. The carrier particle of claim 4 wherein said nanoparticles of said at least two nanoparticle populations are stained with different dye concentrations.
- 8. A carrier particle comprising a microparticle and at least one nanoparticle of at least one nanoparticle population coupled with said microparticle wherein said nanoparticles in said at least one nanoparticle population are dyed with the same concentration of a dye.
- 9. The carrier particle of claim 8 wherein the dye is a fluorescent dye.
- 10. A carrier particle comprising a microparticle and at least one nanoparticle of at least one nanoparticle population coupled with said microparticle wherein said microparticle is stained with a dye.
- 11. The carrier particle of claim 10 wherein said dye is a fluorescent dye.
- 12. A plurality of carrier particles which include microparticles having nanoparticles of more than one nanoparticle population coupled with said microparticles.
- 13. The plurality of microparticles of claim 12 which include microparticles having nanoparticles of one nanoparticle population coupled with said microparticles and which include microparticles having nanoparticles of another nanoparticle population coupled with said microparticles.
- 14. A method of determining concentration of an analyte in a sample comprising the steps of:(a) providing a population of carrier particles which includes microparticles coupled with a subpopulation of nanoparticles, thereby providing a subpopulation of carrier particles, the subpopulation of nanoparticles being labeled so as to provide a specific subpopulation characteristic detectable by an instrument, the carrier particles of the specific carrier particle subpopulation having attached thereto a reagent which reacts with the analyte to form a bimolecular product, (b) contacting the sample with the population of carrier particles, (c) identifying the subpopulation of the carrier particles using the specific subpopulation characteristic, and (d) calculating the concentration of the analyte in the sample according to the bimolecular product detected for the subpopulation of carrier particles.
- 15. The method of claim 14 wherein the subpopulation of nanoparticles is labeled with a fluorescent label.
- 16. A method of determining concentration of a multiplicity of specific analytes in a sample comprising the steps of:(a) providing a population of carrier particles which includes microparticles coupled with a multiplicity of subpopulations of nanoparticles, thereby providing a multiplicity of subpopulations of carrier particles, each subpopulation of nanoparticles being labeled so as to provide a specific subpopulation characteristic detectable by an instrument, the carrier particles of a specific carrier particle subpopulation having attached thereto a specific reagent which reacts with a specific analyte to form a specific bimolecular product, (b) contacting the sample containing the multiplicity of specific analytes with the population of carrier particles, (c) identifying the multiplicity of subpopulations of the carrier particles using the specific subpopulation characteristics, and (d) calculating the concentrations of the specific analytes in the sample according to the specific bimolecular product detected for each subpopulation of carrier particle.
- 17. The method of claim 16 wherein each subpopulation of nanoparticles is labeled with a specific fluorescent label.
- 18. The method of claim 16 wherein the instrument is a flow cytometer.
- 19. The method of claim 16 wherein the instrument is an electrophoresis cell.
- 20. The method of claim 16 wherein the instrument is a centrifuge.
- 21. The method of claim 16 wherein a specific characteristic detectable by the instrument is a fluorescence emission characteristic.
- 22. The method of claim 16 wherein a specific characteristic detectable by the instrument is a radioactive emission characteristic.
- 23. The method of claim 16 wherein a specific characteristic detectable by the instrument is a carrier particle size characteristic.
- 24. The method of claim 16 wherein a specific characteristic detectable by the instrument is a carrier particle density characteristic.
- 25. The method of claim 16 wherein a specific characteristic detectable by the instrument is a carrier particle color characteristic.
- 26. The method of claim 16 wherein a specific characteristic detectable by the instrument is an electrical charge characteristic of a carrier particle.
- 27. The method of claim 16 wherein a specific characteristic detectable by the instrument is a magnetic charge characteristic of a carrier particle.
- 28. The method of claim 16 wherein the bimolecular product includes strands of DNA.
- 29. The method of claim 16 wherein the bimolecular product includes an antibody and an antigen.
- 30. The method of claim 16 wherein the bimolecular product includes a receptor and a ligand.
- 31. The method of claim 16 wherein the bimolecular product includes a reaction product of an enzyme and an enzyme substrate.
- 32. A kit for the detection of an analyte of interest, the kit comprising at least one polymeric microparticle with attached nanoparticles and at least one analytical reagent.
- 33. A kit according to claim 32 wherein said kit further comprises a secondary reagent and a standard reagent.
- 34. A kit according to claim 32 wherein said analytical reagent is capable of binding to an analyte.
- 35. A kit according to claim 32 wherein said nanoparticles contain a fluorescent label.
- 36. A kit according to claim 32 which includes nanoparticles containing a fluorescent label coupled with said microparticle, a quantity of competitor molecule, and a quantity reference material.
- 37. A kit according to claim 32 further including a wash buffer.
- 38. A kit according to claim 32 further including a container for carrying out a bimolecular reaction.
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/149,225, filed Aug. 17, 1999, incorporated herein by reference.
US Referenced Citations (17)
Non-Patent Literature Citations (2)
Entry |
Phan, Quang N., International Search Report For PCT/US99/01315, Apr. 7, 1999. |
Zinngrebe, U. International Search Report for PCT/US00/22543, Oct. 25, 2000. |
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60/149225 |
Aug 1999 |
US |