Simplifying antibody conjugation processes

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While almost all antibody-based detection techniques require a label of some description which confers measurability, the vast majority of commercially available antibodies are not labelled.

By covalently attaching the label directly to the primary antibody it is possible to overcome the difficulties of using an indirect detection method and secondary antibody, thus reducing the complexity of immunoassays.

Innova Biosciences has developed a conjugation technology called Lightning-Link that eliminates almost all of the steps employed in a traditional conjugation process. The elimination of column separations from Innova’s process has probably had the greatest impact. Issues that have beset traditional conjugation procedures - losses of material, sample dilution, batch-to-batch variation and difficulties in scaling up - have now been removed. The approach is also tolerant of sodium azide and BSA.

The labels presently available in the one-step Lightning-Link format include enzymes (horseradish peroxidase, glucose oxidase and alkaline phosphatase), fluorescent proteins (phycoerythrin, allophycocyanin, PerCP), streptavidin, biotin and fluorescent dyes that cover the entire visible spectrum.

Recently oligonucleotides have also been integrated into the Lightning-Link format, allowing the development of reagents for use in ultra-sensitive immuno-PCR diagnostics tests.