Non-optical screening platforms: the next wave in label-free screening?

The use of optical biosensors for compound screening was first demonstrated in the mid-1990s, but there has been limited uptake in the market owing to issues of limited throughput and a lack of applications for key receptor classes. Recently, several start-up and established tools companies have exploited non-optical detection modalities that seek to address the shortcomings of more established optical approaches. Platforms based on acoustic resonance, electrical impedance, microcantilevers, nanowires and differential calorimetry are beginning to appear with commercially available products targeted at post-high-throughput screening hit confirmation and mode-of-action studies. This article highlights key advances in commercial label-free analysis platforms, which complement more traditional optical system and which also allow novel assay formats for the analysis of previously intractable targets.