Slide Coatings for ELISA Microarray

Sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) microarray is an emerging technology that promises to be a powerful tool for the detection of disease biomarkers. The current technology for ELISA microarrays has been derived primarily from DNA microarrays and is not fully characterized for use with proteins. For example, there are a myriad of surface chemistries that are commercially available for antibody microarrays, but there are no rigorous studies that compare these different surfaces. We have used a sandwich ELISA microarray platform to analyze different slide coatings. Full standard curves were generated for a variety of different assays. This approach provides a rigorous and quantitative system for comparing the various slide types based on spot size and morphology, slide noise, spot background, lower limit of detection, and reproducibility. These studies demonstrate that the properties of the slide surface affect the activity of immobilized antibodies and the quality of data produced.