The signal changes because binding alters the thickness of the biological layer at the sensor surface. Reflected light from this surface produces an interference pattern, and the interaction-induced thickness change shifts the measured wavelength. Thus, the optical response follows molecular association or dissociation without requiring a label on the interacting species.
Association and dissociation provide complementary kinetic information. Association records analyte binding to the immobilized partner, whereas dissociation records its departure from the sensor surface. Together, these phases support calculation of association and dissociation rates, which can then be used with the binding response to characterize interaction affinity.
The immobilized binding partner establishes the surface that captures the analyte during measurement. Its presence gives the assay a defined reference point for observing changes in the biological layer as interaction proceeds. The choice of which interaction component is immobilized therefore determines how the sensor presents the molecular binding event.
Real-time monitoring shows when the analyte associates with the immobilized partner and when it dissociates from the sensor surface. This temporal record preserves the behavior of the interaction rather than reducing it to a single endpoint. In biochemical characterization, that distinction helps connect observed binding with kinetic rates and affinity.
A basic BLI assay workflow begins with a biosensor carrying an immobilized binding partner. The sensor is then used to observe an analyte as it associates with and dissociates from that surface. The resulting wavelength shift is monitored in real time, producing a binding response that supports biochemical interaction analysis.
Applications include protein-protein, protein-small-molecule, and antibody-antigen interactions, as well as other biomolecular binding events. This breadth makes the assay useful when biochemical studies need to compare how different molecular partners interact. The same optical readout can support characterization of binding behavior across these interaction classes.
The wavelength shift provides a measurable readout of the interaction as the biological layer changes. Along with the observed association and dissociation behavior, that signal supports calculation of concentration as well as kinetic rates and affinity. Consequently, a BLI assay can contribute both interaction characterization and quantitative biochemical analysis.