Homogeneous luminescence assay method based on energy transfer

摘要

The invention is a luminescence energy transfer based bioaffinity assay comprising a first group labeled with an energy donating compound (donor) and a second group labeled with an energy accepting compound (acceptor), wherein the donor is a luminescent lanthanide chelate having a long excited state lifetime and the acceptor is either a luminescent compound having a short excited state lifetime or a nonluminescent compound. The increase or decrease, respectively, in the energy transfer from the donor to the acceptor resulting from shortening or lengthening, respectively, of the distance between the said groups, is measured. Characteristic for the invention is that the lanthanide energy emission and the acceptor energy absorption do not essentially or not at all overlap each other.