Impact of blocking and detection chemistries on antibody performance for reverse phase protein arrays.

Careful selection of well-qualified antibodies is critical for accurate data collection from reverse phase protein arrays (RPPA). The most common way to qualify antibodies for RPPA analysis is by Western blotting because the detection mechanism is based on the same immunodetection principles. Western blots of tissue or cell lysates that result in single bands and low cross-reactivity indicate appropriate antibodies for RPPA detection. Western blot conditions used to validate antibodies for RPPA experiments, including blocking and detection reagents, have significant effects on aspects of antibody performance such as cross-reactivity against other proteins in the sample. We have found that there can be a dramatic impact on antibody behavior with changes in blocking reagent and detection method, and offer an alternative method that allows detection reagents and conditions to be held constant in both antibody validation and RPPA experiments.

Quantitation of virus using laser-based scanning of near-infrared fluorophores replaces manual plate reading in a virus titration assay.

A method was developed for quantitation of a virus titration assay for minimally cytopathic and noncytopathic viruses that utilizes laser-based scanning of near-infrared (NIR) fluorophores. This automated method bypasses the need for manual plate reading thus eliminating human bias and error. The image data is translated by LI-COR's Odyssey software into numerical data which is used directly in the virus titer calculations.

Blocking and detection chemistries affect antibody performance on reverse phase protein arrays.

Antibody specificity is critical for RP protein arrays (RPA). The effects of blocking and detection chemistries on antibody specificity were evaluated for Western blots and RPA. Blocking buffers significantly affected nonspecific banding on Western blots, with corresponding effects on arrays. Tyramide signal amplification (TSA) increased both specific and nonspecific signals on Westerns and arrays, masking the expected gradations in signal intensity. These results suggest that consistent blocking and detection conditions should be used for antibody validation and subsequent RPA experiments.

Near-infrared fluorescence detection permits accurate imaging of loading controls for Western blot analysis.

Housekeeping proteins are typically chosen as internal loading controls for Western blot analysis because of their high, relatively constant expression. It was previously reported that antibodies against beta-actin did not reliably identify differences in sample loading, and extended antibody incubations caused a failure to discriminate differences in target protein levels. Here, beta-actin and GAPDH were evaluated as loading controls using near-infrared fluorescence. A load-dependent response in signal intensity was observed over a 250-fold range of sample concentrations, with R(2) values as high as 0.9939. Longer antibody incubations continued to detect differences in protein level and load-dependent responses became more linear.