The EPFL licenses a technology for immobilizing membrane proteins on sensor surfaces

Benefits :
¨
Fast and simple production of robust sensing surfaces
¨ Suited for label-free detection of receptor activity
¨ Downscaling to the nano- and micrometer scale

Patent status :

US patent 5'756'355, EP patent 0637384 (UK, D, FR and CH) 'Lipid membrane sensors'.

Keywords :

Functional screening, label-free detection, ligand-receptor interactions, receptor micro-arrays, ligand-gated ion channels, GPCRs

Contact researcher / inventor :
Prof. Dr. Horst Vogel
Director of EPFL-DC-LCPPM
CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland

horst.vogel@epfl.ch
http://icpsg3.epfl.ch

Tel : + 41 21 693 3155
Fax : + 41 21 693 6190

Contact Technology Transfer Office :
Gabriel Clerc, Head of EPFL-SRI
CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland

gabriel.clerc@epfl.ch
http://sprwww.epfl.ch/sri

Tel : +41 21 693 35 82
Fax : +41 21 693 70 40

File ref. 6.0014 (EPFL - SRI)

TETHERED LIPID BILAYERS FOR FUNCTIONAL RECEPTOR ASSAYS

The invention concerns the tethering of lipid bilayers to gold surfaces by using sulphur-bearing synthetic lipid molecules. These supported lipid bilayers show a distinguished stability. They have been used to integrate in an active form membrane proteins such as ligand-gated ion channels and G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). The technology is ideally suited to screen the function of receptors by label-free surface sensitive detection such as FTIR spectroscopy (see EPFL's licensing opportunity 'Ligand receptor interactions probed by FTIR spectroscopy' patent application WO 9905509), surface plasmon resonance, electrical impedance spectroscopy and quartz crystal microbalance, to mention a few.

Potential Commercial Applications
¨
Drug screening by probing receptor function
¨ Odorant and taste receptors
¨ Orphan receptors
¨ Receptor micro-arrays