Antibody News

MECP2 antibodies are used in DNA methylation studies as well as research into Rett syndrome, a progressive neurological disorder caused by a mutation in the MECP2 gene. Now, a new study has been published by the laboratory where the Rett Syndrome gene was discovered, citing MECP2 as a critical factor in a number of other neurological conditions by its interaction with GABA. We at Novus Biologicals have an extensive neuroscience antibody catalog which includes MECP2 antibodies.

MeCP2 is a complex member of the MBD family of proteins, related by the presence of a methyl- CpG domain and the ability to bind specifically to methylated DNA. It is found in large concentrations in neurons, where it functions as a transcriptional repressor, silencing transcription by binding to methylated promoters; however antibodystudies have suggested it...

PTEN antibodies have shown PTEN to be an important tumor suppressor and, in mutated form, a factor in cancer development. However, a recent study, led by Robert Rickert, shows that the SHIP gene may also be an important tumor suppressor in B-cell lymphomas. We at Novus Biologicals have an extensive range of PTEN and SHIP antibodies in our antibody catalog.

SHIP (SH2-containing inositol phosphatase) and PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homologue) antibodies are closely aligned, as both proteins have a similar function. PTEN is a lipid phosphatase which dephosphorylates phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate (PIP3), forming phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2.) SHIP is a haemopoietic-specific phosphatase which also hydrolyzes PIP3, but at a different position, producing phosphatidylinositol-3, 4-bisphosphate, or PI(3...

The beta-arrestin family regulate receptor binding of G-proteins, a group of seven transmembrane receptor proteins which includes the adrenergic, dopamine and serotonin receptors. Recently, arrestin antibodies were used in a study into Serotonin Syndrome, a hallucinogenic disorder which can follow SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) use.

The beta-arrestin family are found at postsynaptic receptor sites, where they interact with GRK2 and GRK3 proteins to desensitize G-protein-coupled receptors, dampening the cellular response to stimuli such as hormones, neurotransmitters and sensory signals. For example, S-Arrestin/...

Antibody studies into the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) centre around Gag, a highly complex polyprotein that has so far defied attempts to unravel its complex and varied modes of action. Now, a team from the NIST Center for Neutron Research have revealed a new model which has allowed the protein to be studied in far more clarity. The hope with antibody suppliers is that it will pave the way to understanding many more large, unfathomable proteins.

HIV1 antibodies have uncovered at least some of the complexities of the Gag protein, which performs highly complex tasks during viral assembly, twisting into convoluted shapes within the host cell. During the initial stages, membrane associations are formed which enable HIV genetic material to be transported to the cell membrane. The opposite end of the Gag protein becomes anchored here, elongating into a rod-like shape which helps form a barrier around the virion...

The antibodies in our stem cell antibody catalog are used in many areas of research, from developing therapies to investigating cancer. These research areas are related, because although pluripotent stem cells have the potential to replace organ transplants and heal paralysis, they also have the potential to develop into cancerous cells. Now, researchers at the Rockefeller University have discovered a link between stem cell apoptosis and tumor development in mice.

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been identified in many human cancers. Antibody studies have shown CSCs can accelerate cell proliferation, increase DNA-repair mechanisms and block apoptosis. The development of stem cell marker antibodies to these proteins is an important area of CSC research.

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We at Novus Biologicals have added several new products to our CD antibody database. The CD, or Cluster of Differential proteins are a family of type I transmembrane glycoproteins widely expressed in immune cell populations. These include B cells, thymocytes and peripheral T cells. Widely used as cell markers, a recent antibody study identified three CD proteins - CD44+, CD49fhi, and CD133hi – as new cell markers in an aggressive, but uncommon type of breast cancer.

The CD system was originally defined in 1982, at the First International Workshop and Conference on Human Leukocyte Differentiation Antigens (HDLAs). It was known that various research teams had succeeded in generating a large number of monoclonal antibodies targeting surface epitopes on white blood cells. The aim of the conference was to standardize the system, which was extended to include other cells...

Human cancer research is the largest research area in our antibody database, with new oncogenes and cell lines being added all the time.

Cancer triggers come from many sources, with a worrying amount of evidence to suggest that chemicals we’re in contact with every day are largely to blame. Over 100,000 products exist today for which there is little, if any, safety data. Screening for carcinogens was unknown before the 1980s. So far, just 3000 of these chemicals have undergone screening – over 800 were mutagens or carcinogens. Obviously, much more research needs to be done!

Researchers tackle cancer from both angles; cause and prevention. Tumor suppressor antibody studies are an important part of this. Tumor suppressors are genes that reduce the likelihood of a cell becoming cancerous, by blocking the action or production of other proteins, such as growth factors and...

The Merlin protein belongs to the ezrin/radixin/moesin (ERM) family of tumour suppressor proteins. Encoded by the rather less imaginatively named Neurofibromin 2 (NF2) gene, it is thought to play a role in extracellular signal transduction, linking the cell cytoskeleton with membrane-bound proteins and suppressing several receptors, including the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). The Merlin antibodies in our antibody catalog are widely used in cancer studies, since overexpression of EGFR is known to cause several cancers.

NF2 itself can act as an oncogene - first discovered through its connection with neurofibromatosis 2, a rare genetic disorder. NF2 mutations can also cause neuronal tumors. Recently, a study led by a team of researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital revealed...

Our antibody database is primarily focused on protein-coding genes. Although they form only 1% of the total human genome, these important genes account for 85% of the mutations that lead to disease.

DNA sequencing (defining the sequence of the 4 base amino acids within the DNA strand) and then using antibodiesspecific to those sequences, is a vital part of disease research. Sanger sequencing is the standard for doing this. However, in 2007 a next generation (or next gen) sequencing technique was devised. Lauded as the biggest advancement in genomics since microarray technology, it has radically improved diagnostic research.

Sanger sequencing focuses on one gene or gene area at a time, producing long reads of 500 bases or more. By contrast, next-gen sequencing produces short reads of around 25 bases. However, hundreds or even thousands of reads can be produced from many areas of the genome at once. Multiplicity overcomes the error problems arising from short base...

Our antibody databaseincludes many thousands of proteins, and it is constantly being enriched. Modern developments mean that, whereas scientists would once have searched for one protein in a single sample, now they search for several – often simultaneously, and in minute quantities.

Western blotting is a standard antibodyassay technique, which for many years was governed by chemoluminescent signalling. This relies on a single light signal. In recent years, this has given way to fluorescence, which has a broad palette of fluorescent colors and thus can be used to screen several proteins simultaneously, quantifying their presence by means of a control.

An advance on this has been the development of phosphospecific antibodies, which when used alongside standard antibodiescan determine the fraction of phosphorylated to non-phosphorylated protein in a sample. Previously, the only way to do this was to strip and re-probe the blot, owing to the closeness of the two isoforms...

While many of the proteins on our antibody database are studied in relation to their expression in diseases; others become therapies in their own right. This is the case with SERCA2 (Sarcoplasmic reticulum Calcium-ATPase 2 pump), which recently hit the headlines as a treatment for severe heart failure.

SERCA2 is an enzyme that acts as a magnesium-dependent pump in the heart, adult epidermis and smooth muscle tissue. It catalyses ATP hydrolysis and is critical in controlling the transport of Ca2+ between the sarcoplasmic reticulum and the cytoplasm. There are two distinct isoforms: SERCA2a is expressed in cardiac and slow twitch skeletal muscle, where it regulates the contraction/relaxation cycle. SERCA2b is expressed in adult epidermal and smooth muscle tissue, where it performs a similar role.

In June 2010, researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine successfully developed SERCA2a into a new gene therapy, which in Phase ll...

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is a widely used technique for detecting concentration of proteins, using enzyme tagged antibodies with which react with dyes to produce a colorimetric or fluorescent signal. Sandwich ELISA takes this one step further, by pre-coating plastic wells with a known concentration of a "capture" antibody which reacts specifically to the antigen under test. A secondary antibody is then applied, tagged with an enzyme.

Recently, we at Novus Biologicals added a range of Biosensis ELISA kits to our antibody catalog, covering a wide range of antigens important to human disease research. Among them is human BDNF - a protein which was recently in the news as it appeared to have a stress-reducing and possible tumor-reducing effect in cancerous mice subjected to exercise.

BDNF, or Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, is a...