Antibody Pairs

Antibody pairs help you save time and money when developing assays. Antibody pairs are available for a diverse set of applications such as ELISA, Lateral Flow Assays (LFA), Western Blotting-Immunoprecipitation and Proximity Litigation Assays for the investigation of protein protein interaction.

Antibody Selection

We offer you a variety of high-quality antibody Pairs for multiple applications. Browse our shop to compare and order the specific antibody you need or let our customer support assist you via phone, live chat or email.

Antibody Pairs for Lateral Flow

The selection of the appropriate antibody pair is an important step in the development of an LFA. The antigen must be detected with high specificity and sensitivity in an often-heterogeneous sample. Monoclonal antibodies produced from a single B cell show high specificity for a particular epitope on the target and low cross-reactivity. To compensate the lower sensitivity if a mAb is used for capture instead of a poly, multiple mAbs can be combined in an Assay. By capturing different epitopes, the specificity can be increased. Another advantage of mAb is their infinite availability and the possibility to reproduce the antibodies without changes between different batches. They are also better suited for conjugation.

Polyclonal antibodies often have the advantage of being cheaper and having higher affinities for the antigen because they recognize different epitopes. This also allows the recognition of differences in the antigen, e.g. different species, variants or modified proteins. But it also may lead to a higher cross-reactivity, which may be desirable for a family of targets or its metabolites. The disadvantage of pAbs is batch-to-batch variation, as the immune response can vary from animal to animal and from bleed to bleed. The supply of a polyclonal cannot be guaranteed for a lifetime. The antibody must also be highly stable to withstand the various conditions to which it is exposed during the production and storage of the LFA. Custom antibody development is an excellent alternative if there are no commercially available antibodies against the required target. This is particularly advantageous if you want to own the clone yourself without having to buy expensive licenses. During production, your exact needs can be addressed and you get the best result for your LFA, as well as a long-term supply even on a large scale.

Reporter Particles

The most common lables used for LFA are latex beads and gold nanoparticles. These particles produce a colored readout for which there is no need for a visualization device. They can be spontaneously bound to the antibodies either by passive conjugation, via intermolecular forces (van der Waals, ionic forces). This is a very traditional method where the orientation of the antibody on the surface is not controllable and the stability under different conditions, such as pH values or different samples needs to be tested.

Covalent conjugation to carboxyl-functionalized particles offer a higher stability and lower sensitivity towards harsh buffer conditions and matrices. The ratio of antibody to particle can be precisely controlled and optimized, therefore less antibody is needed to obtain consistent results.

Control Lines

A reaction must also be detected in the control window in sandwich format (C), independent of the result of the test window (T), respectively the presence of the analyte, to ensure that the procedure runs smoothly, and the test is performed correctly. The control antibody bound on the pad should be directed against the species from which the primary antibody originates. This secondary antibody binds the conjugated primary antibody, resulting in a visible signal in the control line. If your conjugated primary is derived from mouse, the secondary must be directed against mouse, e.g. a rabbit anti-mouse.

The principle of antibody pairs in ELISA

A matched pair consists of a capture antibody immobilized on a solid phase, and a second detection antibody directed against different epitopes of the target protein, with no steric hindrance. A measurable signal is generated by conjugation of a reporter enzyme to the capture antibody. The addition of a substrate catalyzes a colour reaction that allows quantitative measurements of the analyte using standard series.