Immobilized hydrogels for screening of molecular interactions

Spatially arrayed, high-density microarrays enable the rapid assessment of biological recognition events, and this information is of widespread interest for those working in basic research laboratories as well as in the clinic. Today, one can find DNA, protein, or small molecule arrays. Limitations with these systems include covalent modification of the target complement to the array substrate, array- and target-dependent setup conditions, multiple steps, and loss of hydration at the surface. To overcome these limitations, we have designed, prepared, and evaluated immobilized hydrogels as general screening chambers for small molecule-protein, protein-protein, and nucleic acid-nucleic acid interactions. This biomaterial-based approach is facile, rapid, requires only one setup protocol, and physically entraps the target complement within the polymer network and thus offers advantages over the conventional chips.