New Sequencing Technology Opens Doors for Antibody Research
DNA-sequencing lies at the very heart of what we at Novus Biologicals do. In the last 3 years, enormous advancements have been made that make it more and more likely our antibodies will one day be used for routine diagnostic procedures.
The recent development of next-generation sequencing, which allows the analysis of the distribution of DNA bases over hundreds of different genes and gene segments in a single sample, has become an exciting alternative to microarray assays. These utilise a hybridisation technique and tiny amounts of DNA sample and target antibody, to produce quantifiable fluorescent spots on a biochip. However, the process results in variable results between experiments, and the DNA can hybridise in more than one spot, creating misleading data.
Next-gen sequencing, although in its infancy, addresses these problems by performing actual sequence reads. In combination with antibody probes, it has been used to determine regulatory biomarkers in chromatin; distinguish the differences between stem cells and differentiated cells; locate the binding position of a neural regulatory protein in the genome, and explore how activation by an external signal affects the behaviour of a regulatory protein. These areas are familiar to anyone ordering proteins from our antibody catalog.
Our antibody catalogue is primarily used for disease research. Recently, next-gen technology has been used to identify gene loci associated with the autosomal recessive/dominant disorders Miller and Schinzel-Giedion syndrome, and TARP syndrome, an X-linked form of cleft palate caused by a mutation in the RBM10 gene.
Recently King et al, of the University of Washington, reported it as a fast and cost-effective way to screen women for DNA mutations linked to ovarian and breast cancer. A large number of proteins on our cancer antibody database are devoted to breast cancer.