The Benefits of a Western Blotting Service

Western blotting service is a common technique for protein detection that is widely employed in the fields of drug discovery, disease research and biopharmaceutical quality control. This method utilizes the specific binding of antibodies to target proteins in complex sample mixtures such as cell lysates, tissue homogenate, or recombinant proteins. By determining the relative protein abundance through a series of laddered bands, western blot analysis provides qualitative and semi-quantitative information on the identified proteins.

For quantitative results, a labeled secondary antibody is used to bind to epitopes on the targeted antigen to subsequently create a signal that can be detected by a chemiluminescent or fluorescent detection system. The tagged secondary antibody is usually conjugated with a label that is recognized by an enzyme or fluorophore such as biotin, horseradish peroxidase (HRP), or alkaline phosphatase.

Western Blotting Services: Ensuring Accurate Protein Detection for Your Studies

X-ray film is traditionally used to capture the resulting chemiluminescence or fluorescence signal, but more sensitive and technologically advanced digital imaging systems can be utilized for real-time results and better dynamic range. These more advanced systems also offer the advantage of requiring lower amounts of antibody to be used to provide adequate signal for detection, allowing researchers to stretch their limited supply of antibodies across many experiments.

The process of obtaining protein samples for western blotting can be laborious, but with the right technology, western analysis has entered a new era. The Protein Simple Automated Western System is easy to use and allows a full western run with data to be generated in less than 3 hours without the need for transferring, re-blotting or time in a dark room!