Antibody News

Dr. Randall Nelson and his Molecular Biomarkers Lab Team are the topic of this week's Novus Customer Focus. At Arizona State University's Biodesign Institute, Dr. Nelson and his lab conduct biomarker research to investigate and understand how biomarkers function and how they can be used in medical applications.

The Nelson Lab studies biomarkers using a unique methodology called mass spectrometry immunoassay (MSIA). MSIA uses both Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) and Electrospray Ionization (ESI). This multiplex approach allows for the fast and accurate analysis of several specific proteins and their variants at the same time. MSIA allows Dr. Randall and his team to accurately identify amino acid sequences of small and large proteins, as well as these proteins' post-translational modifications and changes in concentrations, collectively termed ' microheterogeneity'. The capability of...

Veterinary research is a well established and growing field for studying animal reproduction, infectious disease, cancer and more. Research of vet species often requires the production and use of vet antibodies. Novus Biologicals provides an extensive line of antibodies for veterinary research. Novus' vet antibody line includes antibodies against many vet species, including bovine, canine, chicken, equine, feline, goat, porcine and sheep.

All of Novus' vet antibodies are 100% guaranteed to work in the species and applications stated on the datasheet. Many of these veterinary antibodies are also available conjugated to a variety of labels, including fluorescent dyes and proteins, enzymes, biotin, streptavidin and more.

For more information on veterinary antibodies, or if you are interested in testing antibodies in previously untested vet species, please contact the Novus Biologicals Technical Team at technical@novusbio.com....

A large number of antibody suppliers supply conjugated and non-conjugated marker antibodies, targeted at specific stem cell populations. Until recently the number of oval stem cell markers was extremely limited. However, we at Novus Biologicals have succeeded in developing a new line of monoclonal antibodies specifically targeted to the murine oval cell response. These have just been added to our stem cell antibody database.

Oval stem cells are progenitors that play a major role in regenerating diseased or injured hepatic tissue. They can be stimulated into production by using a 2-AAF (2-acetylaminofluorene) /hepatic injury protocol - a combination of chemical damage and partial removal of the liver. They were first identified in rat studies, where chemical and hepatic injury techniques resulted in the activation of previously-unseen oval cells, which facilitated cell...

Novus Biologicals specializes in offering top quality antibody reagents to many of the transcription factor proteins that are widely expressed in cancer cells.

C-Myc is one of several transcription factor proteins covered by our antibody catalog. Encoded by the MYC gene, c-Myc is important for cell differentiation, proliferation, cycle progression and apoptosis. It is expressed in a number of different cancers.

The phosphorylation of c-Myc has been widely studied in order to better understand its oncogenic properties. Antibody assays have suggested a functional link between c-Myc phosphorylation at Thr58/Ser62, Glycogen...

We at Novus Biologicals are one of the leading antibody suppliers for diabetes research. An aging population, and the increasing incidence of type 2 diabetes, makes it an area of increasing interest - especially as there is often a close link to cancer. Metabolic studies and diabetes research go hand-in-hand. The glyoxylase system is part of this, removing metabolic by-products that would otherwise be toxic to the cell, and as such features highly on our antibody database.

The glyoxylase enzymes are responsible for deactivating reactive oxoaldehydes, such as MGO (methylglyoxal). MGO is a normal by-product of metabolism, and is formed in several ways e.g. by spontaneous formation from dihydroxyacetone phosphate, and by enzyme action on triosephosphate isomerase. At low concentrations MGO is cytostatic (i.e. a...

We at Novus Biologicals recently added two new MCP1 antibodies to our antibody catalog. MCP1, also known as MCAF (monocyte chemotactic and activating factor) is released by a diverse range of cell types as part of the inflammatory response. A member of the SIG (small inducible gene) family, it is selective for monocytes and basophils, mainly to recruit monocytes to injury and infection sites.

In a pathological role, MPC1 is implicated in various diseases in which monocytic infiltrates are expressed, such as atherosclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. Elevated levels have been found in joints of rheumatoid arthritis sufferers, where antibody studies suggest its function is to recruit macrophages and stimulate inflammation within the joints. Elevated levels have also been found in the urine of lupus sufferers, pointing to its role in kidney inflammation.

Supplying antibodies for neuroscience research forms an important part of our work here at Novus Biologicals. Our antibody database is represented by more than 5,600 neuroscience products covering conditions ranging from sensory systems to neurodegeneration.

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) plays a central role in neural research, as it is the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian central nervous system (CNS). Disruption of GABA and its receptors have been expressed in a range of mental health conditions. A major study by Dr. Andrea Levinson, et. al. has suggested an important role in major depressive illness.

Stem cell marker antibodies are used to identify and isolate stem cells in vitro. Whereas adult stem cells can only differentiate into one cell type, embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have the unique ability to differentiate into a large variety. Stem cells can be genetically manipulated into specific cell lines, and researchers have recently developed a promising new method of producing ESC-like cell lines from adult stem cells. We at Novus Biologicals have a large antibody database specific to adult and embryonic stem cell research.

Stem cells are found in both healthy and diseased tissue. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are expressed in both solid tumors and leukaemias, and are of particular interest as they are resistant to many therapies, and are thought to drive metastatic spread of cancer cells. Hypoxia is...

We at Novus Biologicals have a vast number of products in our antibody catalogue, targeted at cancer research. They cover areas as diverse as apoptosis and cell signalling pathways, and antibodies include those derived from a number of tumour cell lines.

Now, it looks as if our cancer antibody database is set to expand once more. Scientists have recently uncovered exciting new facts on sarcomas - rare tumours affecting only a small minority of people, which are found in tissues throughout the body. Despite the rarity of sarcomas, the findings have enormous ramifications on the field of cancer therapy as a whole. They could pave the way for a whole catalogue of new treatments for the most common cancers affecting man.

Sarcomas are found in muscle, nerves, joint tissues, deep skin tissues and blood vessels. The proteins causing them undergo unique, well-...

Antibody studies into human CHARGE syndrome have shown mutated CHD7 plays a major role in its development. CHARGE originates in neural crest cells (NCCs) during early embryonic development. It leads to a number of birth defects including craniofacial, heart, brain, urogenital, hearing and growth defects. New research conducted by Wysocka et al, of the Stamford University School of Medicine, indicates a connection with tumour development in adults.

Chromatin is the tightly-packed form of DNA found within the cell nucleus. It is controlled by a number of chromatin remodeler proteins, one of which is CHD7. CHD7 acts on nuclear proteins to allow activation or deactivation of various genes.

NCCs are unusual in that they migrate freely during embryonic development, differentiating into a range of cells including neural, heart, cartilage and bone cells. Wysocka et al, of the Stamford University School of Medicine, recently conducted...

We at Novus Biologicals have a large antibody database for cancer research. However, AML, or acute myeloid leukaemia, is one of the cancers for which the number of antibodies is still fairly small, owing to limited knowledge of the genes involved.

An exciting new discovery looks set to change all that. Recently, Thompson et al of Abramson Cancer Centre, Pennsylvania University, discovered mutated IDH1, or isocitrate dehydrogenase 1, in stock AML cells. The biomarker was 2HG (2-hydroxyglutarate), a metabolite specific only to the mutated form of IDH1. The results indicated that mutated IDH1 could account for up to 50% of all AML cases where a gene had previously not been identified.

Immunocytochemistry (ICC) is a frequently used technique that allows researchers to determine if an antigen is expressed by specific cellular or sub-cellular compartments via the use of antibodies. Many research-grade antibodies are suitable for ICC analysis, however many are not or have not been tested.

Our antibody catalog includes over 1,800 antibodies that have been tested for use in ICC analysis. We at Novus Biologicals recently validated 25 of our antibodies for use in ICC. This ICC testing was conducted on either HeLa cell extracts or NTERA-2 cells. HeLa is an immortal, cervical cancer cell line that is frequently used in scientific research, and NTERA-2 is a human neural cell line that is commonly used as well.

One of our Endoplasmic Reticulum Marker antibodies, an...