IFA

In the first incubation step specific antibodies from the diluted patient sample bind to the solid-phase bound antigens. Next, fluorescein (FITC)-labeled antibody (conjugate) binds to the specific antibodies from the patient sample. By excitation with the respective wavelength, you can view the complex with a fluorescence microscope. The test processing is manual, semi-, or completely automated.

BIOCHIP technology

EUROIMMUN’s BIOCHIP technology provides unrivaled quality and variety in IFA. Thanks to a special activation technique, we modify cover glasses in such a way that they offer the strongest adhesion for very different substrates. Cultured cells, tissue sections, antigen-expressing cells, and purified antigens (antigen dots) are used as substrates. The cover glasses coated with biological substrates are cut into millimeter-sized fragments (BIOCHIPs).

For cultured cell substrates, you can get several thousand preparations with consistent, premium quality. The BIOCHIPs are fixed on the test fields of specially developed plastic slides. When many BIOCHIPs coated with different substrates are arranged in one reaction field, antibodies against various organs or infectious agents can be investigated simultaneously. Such BIOCHIP mosaics allow the generation of comprehensive antibody profiles (multiplex) with minimal sample volumes or the reciprocal verification of the results on different substrates.

TITERPLANE technology

BIOCHIP technology ensures the highest standardization of substrate production. Together with TITERPLANE technology, it provides a unique form of incubation for brilliant fluorescence images.
Using the TITERPLANE technique, the diluted samples are first pipetted onto the fields of a glass reagent tray. The fields of the reagent tray are hydrophilic while the area outside the fields is hydrophobic. Thus, the samples cannot come in contact with each other. Only when all the samples have been pipetted are the slides placed onto the reagent trays, with the BIOCHIPs facing downwards. In this way, all reaction fields come into contact with the samples at the same time. So, the reactions begin simultaneously for all samples. This prevents deviations in the reaction intensity due to differences in the incubation times.

Another advantage of TITERPLANE technology is that inverted placement of slides above the samples prevents precipitate interference. Specifically, crystals or particles in the samples do not accumulate on the BIOCHIPS but rather on the reagent tray. Moreover, TITERPLANE technology prevents evaporation of the samples, rendering a conventional “humidity chamber” unnecessary. This results in optimal fluorescence images, thus offering automated or manual evaluation.