NONRADIOACTIVE LIGAND-BINDING ASSAY FOR EPIDERMAL GROWTH-FACTOR RECEPTOR

A rapid and sensitive nonradioactive ligand binding assay for identifying the agonists and antagonists of epidermal growth factor receptor is described. The assay is easy to perform, has a within-assay error of less than 15%, and does not use radioactive substances. Nonspecific binding is less than 10% and the assay is sensitive enough to detect epidermal growth factor (EGF) antagonists at as little as 10 nm, if the antagonist has the same affinity as EGF. The assay is carried out in 96-well plates and is particularly suitable for largescale screening. This report includes description of the methods that we used to assess the validity of the assay system, and the results of that assessment. © 1990.