Caltag Medsystems

1,200 GPCR Antibodies, IHC validated - Prices Reduced for 2012

2012-03-21T10:26:00.011Z

MBL offers the industry's largest inventory of rabbit polyclonal anti-human peptide antibodies to G Protein- Coupled Receptors (GPCRs). Comprising 1,200 antibodies covering 500 different target antigens, all GPCR antibodies are optimized for histochemistry in human tissues using formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded sections. Plus, all GPCR antibodies from MBL are reduced in price in 2012, from £258 to £200. This promotion applies to antibodies beginning with Product Code : LS-A.

Antibodies are provided as 50μg of peptide affinity-purified polyclonal rabbit sera. The expression pattern of each antibody has been screened across a panel of up to 50 tissues and compared to other proprietary or commercially available antibodies by board-certified pathologists. Antibodies are selected that show the strongest concordance to existing literature and known patterns of expression in other species, and for their affinity and specificity to their targets.

LS-A1192 , brain, cerebellum LS-A1208, pancreas, islet

Request our GPCR brochure for full product details, please email office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk

Mini-Exhibitions in Scotland...

2012-03-19T14:52:00.002Z

Caltag Medsystems will be touring around Scotland in the last week of March visiting a number of Institutes, why not come along and see us. Mini exhibitions give us the opportunity to showcase the wide breadth of products that we offer, covering a range of research areas including flow cytometry, histology, cancer, cell biology and many more....

We start in Aberdeen on Monday 26^th March and will be located in the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University of Aberdeen.
On Wednesday 28^th we will be visiting the University of Edinburgh and will be in the Darwin Building Foyer (opposite the library!)
On Thursday 29^th we will be at the Institute of Molecular, Cell and Systems Biology, located at the Wolfson Link Courtyard at the University of Glasgow.
We end the week at the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research on Friday 30^th, where we’ll be in the Atrium all day.

Each day we have a free prize draw where you could win one of 5 Hotel Chocolat Easter Bunnies!

Why not pop down and see what we have to offer...

Practicalities of Cellular Analysis using Flow Cytometry, Light and Electron Microscopy

2012-03-16T09:05:00.001Z

On Wednesday 21^st March we will be in Newcastle exhibiting at the Practicalities of Cellular Analysis meeting.

The meeting will focus on 3 major aspects of cellular analysis, namely flow cytometry, light and electron microscopy. Very often these methods of cellular analysis are seen as individual disciplines, but in many cases they can complement each other to achieve a common research goal.

The meeting structure will revolve around 3 multi-disciplinary keynote talks encompassing the technology mix, interspersed amongst these will be parallel sessions focusing on aspects of flow cytometry, light and electron microscopy. In total, the event will incorporate approximately 2 hours of parallel sessions for each discipline and three 40 minute plenary talks.

The meeting will be held at the Conference and Banqueting Suite at the International Centre for Life, Newcastle Upon Tyne. The Centre for Life is a unique science village, which includes a Bioscience Centre, an exhibition area, the North-East Stem Cell Institute and the Institute of Human Genetics.

Click here to book to attend this meeting.

View the programme here.

LAG-3 (CD223): A Marker for Activated T Cells.

2012-03-15T10:45:00.005Z

The Anti LAG-3 antibody, clone 17B4, is a potent antagonistic LAG-3 antibody, and is available in various conjugates from Adipogen (see further down for product details). LAG-3 (CD223) is a marker for activated T cells. It is a:

CD4-like membrane protein which binds to MHC class II protein.
Expressed by T cells, B cells, NK cells and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs).
Negatively regulates T cell homeostasis, proliferation and activation.
Enhances Treg induced suppressive activity.
Soluble LAG-3 enhances DC activation and immunogenicity of tumor vaccines.
Antagonistic LAG-3 antibodies inhibit LAG-3 as down-regulator of the T cell response and lead to enhanced T cell proliferation.

For further information about LAG-3, please see the selected review article: The CD4-like molecule LAG-3, biology and therapeutic applications: S. Sierro, et al.; Expert. Opin. Ther. Targets 15, 91 (2011) (Review)

Anti LAG-3 antibody, clone 17B4: a potent antagonistic LAG-3 antibody:

LAG-3 (human), mAb (blocking) (17B4) Product Code: AG-20B-0012-C100 100 µg
LAG-3 (human), mAb (blocking) (17B4) (PF) Product Code: AG-20B-0012PF-C100 100 µg
LAG-3 (human), mAb (17B4) (Biotin) Product Code: AG-20B-0012B-C100 100 µg
LAG-3 (human), mAb (17B4) (FITC) Product Code: AG-20B-0012F-C100 100 µg
LAG-3 (human), mAb (17B4) (ATTO 488) Product Code: AG-20B-0012TD-T100 100 tests
LAG-3 (human), mAb (17B4) (ATTO 590) Product Code: AG-20B-0012TM-T100 100 tests
LAG-3 (human), mAb (17B4) (ATTO 647N) Product Code: AG-20B-0012TS-T100 100 tests
LAG-3, mAb (blocking) (11E3) Product Code: AG-20B-0011-C100 100 µg
LAG-3, mAb (blocking) (11E3) (PF) Product Code: AG-20B-0011PF-C100 100 µg

Biologically Active Soluble LAG-3:

LAG-3 (human):Fc (human) (rec.) Product Code: AG-40B-0031-C050 50 µg
LAG-3 (mouse):Fc (mouse) (rec.) Product Code: AG-40B-0039-C050 50 µg
LAG-3 (mouse):Fc (mouse) (rec.) (BULK) Product Code: AG-40B-0039AA-C500

Visit the Adipogen web site for a full list of LAG- 3 reagents. Caltag Medsystems is the exclusive distributor for Adipogen Products in the UK.

AMP Kinase Assay Kit for measurement of endogenous AMPK activity

2012-03-09T09:49:00.006Z

The AMP Kinase Assay Kit from MBL is designed to measure the activities of purified AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) or recombinant AMPK for the rapid and sensitive evaluation of activators or inhibitors.

The phospho-serine specific monoclonal antibody used in this assay kit has been demonstrated to recognize the phospho-serine 789 in mouse Insulin Receptor Substrate-1 (IRS-1), which is efficiently phosphorylated by AMPK. The AMPK Assay kit can be used for column fractions of cultured primary cell, cell line, or tissue can be assayed.

CycLex AMPK Kinase Assay Kit. Product Code: CY-1182

References:

Functional dissection of lysine deacetylases reveals that HDAC1 and p300 regulate AMPK. Lin YY et al. Nature. 2012 Feb 8; 482(7384): 251-5.
Identification of aneuploidy-selective antiproliferation compounds. Tang YC et al. Cell. 2011 Feb 18;144 (4):499-512.
Peptide switch is essential for Sirt1 deacetylase activity. Kang H et al. Mol Cell. 2011 Oct 21;44(2):203-13.

Further Information:

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) regulates cellular energy metabolism by phosphorylation of key enzymes in metabolic pathways, such as acetyl–coenzyme A carboxylase (ACC) or mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin), by modulating their activities, and by regulating the activity of transcription factors and transcriptional cofactors. Its functions have been extensively studied in muscles and liver. AMPK stimulates pathways, which increase energy production (glucose transport, fatty acid oxidation) and switches off pathways, which consume energy (lipogenesis, protein synthesis, gluconeogenesis). Activation of AMPK in adipose tissue can be achieved through situations such as fasting and exercise. Adiponectin and leptin as well as hypoglycaemic drugs are activators of adipose tissue AMPK. This activation probably involves changes in the AMP/ATP ratio, and the upstream kinase LKB1. These results have led to the concept that AMPK has an interesting pharmaceutical potential in situations of insulin resistance (type 2 diabetes) and it is indeed the target of existing drugs, e.g. Metformin and hormones which improve insulin sensitivity.

Mammalian AMPK is a trimeric enzyme comprising a catalytic α subunit (63 kDa) and non-catalytic β and γ subunits. Multiple isoforms of each mammalian enzyme exist (α1, α2, β1, β2, γ1, γ2, γ3), each encoded by a different gene. The β subunits have a calculated molecular mass of 30 kDa, but migrate on SDS-PAGE with apparent masses of 38 kDa (β1) and 34 kDa (β2), whereas the three γ isoforms have molecular masses of 37 kDa (γ1), 63 kDa (γ2) and 55 kDa (γ3). While AMPK complexes containing α2 (the first catalytic isoform to be cloned) predominate in skeletal and cardiac muscle, approximately equal levels of α1 and α2 complexes are present in the liver. In contrast, pancreatic islet β-cells largely express α1 complex activity.

CycLex AMPK Kinase Assay Kit. Product Code: CY-1182

Angiogenesis ELISA Strip Assay from Signosis – Profile 8 Cytokines Simultaneously

2012-03-08T11:24:00.004Z

Angiogenesis as a biological switch process is governed by numerous pro- and anti-angiogenic factors, including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (FGFb), epidermal growth factor (EGF), and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-b). Profiling of these factors is critical to understanding angiogenesis.

The Human Angiogenesis ELISA Strip I (Product Code: EA-1011) and II (Product Code: EA-1041) available from Signosis each allow the simultaneous profiling of 8 cytokines involved in angiogenesis. The ELISA strip 1 detects TNFa, IGF-1, VEGF, IL-6, FGFb, TGFb, EGF, and Leptin, whilst ELISA strip 2 is used for measurement of PDGF-BB, PIGF-1, NGF, SCF, MCP-1, MIP-1a, IL-2, and IL-4.

Signosis also offer a Mouse Angiogenesis ELISA Strip (Product Code: EA-1021) for detection of TNFa, IGF-1, VEGF, IL-6, FGFb, IFNr, EGF, and Leptin and a Rat Angiogenesis ELISA Strip (Product Code: EA-1211) for TNFa, VEGF, IL-6, FGFb, IFNr, Leptin, MCP and Rantes.

Features and Benefits:

Multiplex - A single ELISA strip allows the measurement of 8 angiogenesis cytokines.
Flexible – Compare from 2 samples to 12 samples within a single plate.
Quantitative measurements - Unlike membrane-based array assays, the difference in concentration between individual proteins between samples can be quantitatively compared.
No need for capital equipment - Unlike beads-based assays, no capital equipment is required.
Simple procedure -All in one system with a pre-coated 12 X 8 well plate.

Products:

Human Angiogenesis ELISA Strip I: Product Code: EA-1011

Human Angiogenesis ELISA Strip II: Product Code: EA-1041

Mouse Angiogenesis ELISA Strip Product Code: EA-1021

Rat Angiogenesis ELISA Strip Product Code: EA-1211

STEPCOUNT™ - Absolute Counting Cells For Flow Cytometry

2012-03-02T11:28:00.001Z

Immunostep Stepcount™ tubes are designed for determining absolute counts of cells in peripheral blood, bone marrow, leukapheresis and culture medium samples using flow cytometry.

Stepcount™ tubes are a single-platform system for absolute counts, which can be used in combination with monoclonal antibodies conjugated with different fluorochromes, which make possible to identify cell sub populations for which the absolute count is intended.

Absolute counting of cells or cell subsets has a number of significant clinical applications as monitoring the disease status of HIV-infected patients, enumerating residual white blood cells in leukoreduced blood products, and assessing immunodeficiency in a variety of situations. The singleplatform method (flow cytometry alone) has emerged as the method of choice for absolute cell enumeration. This technology counts only the cells of interest in a precisely determined blood volume. Exact cell identification is accomplished by a logical electronic gating algorithm capable of identifying lineage-specific immunofluorescent markers. Exclusion of unwanted cells is automatic. This extensive and detailed unit presents protocols for both volumetric and flow-rate determination of residual white blood cells and of leukocyte subsets.

Benefits of Stepcount™

Single-platform system for absolute counts
In vitro diagnostic use
Closed transparent tubes with a metal screen, including a white matrix at the bottom
Excitable at wavelengths from 365 to 650nm

StepCount Tubes (25 test)
Product Code: STP-25T
Price: £129

StepCount Tubes + CD3/CD16+56/CD45/CD19 (50 test)
Product Code: STPKIT2-50T
Price: £1,270

StepCount Tubes + CD3/CD4/CD45 (50 test)
Product Code: STPKIT3-50T
Price: £892

StepCount Tubes + CD3/CD4/CD8/C45 (50 test)
Product Code: STPKIT1-50T
Price: £1,111

StepCount Tubes + CD4/CD8/CD3 (50 test)
Product Code: STPKIT4-50T
Price: £811

View all these products on our website here.

Ancell™ – Source for High Quality Immunology Research Reagents

2012-03-01T17:13:00.002Z

Ancell Corporation provides monoclonal antibodies, recombinant fusion proteins, isotype controls and second step reagents for immunology research.

They offer a comprehensive range of human CD antibodies, developed and variously labelled to perform in multiple applications, including flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, ELISA, Western Blot, Immunopreciptation and Immunocytochemistry. Search by application here, just download our excel spread sheet and choose the application you are interested in. Several antibodies also have functional applications (antagonistic antibodies) and can be viewed in the same spread sheet.

Ancell also offers a broad range of labelled and unlabelled biologically active recombinant fusion proteins that are complementary to their CD marker antibody panel, view their recombinant protein range here.

View their anti-mouse antibodies here.

View the new Dylight350 conjugates – suitable for use with Flow Cytometers with a UV laser

Ancell also provide isotype controls, second step reagents, progenitor/stem cell products, TNF superfamily and cytokine related research reagents.

The current most popular products from Ancell include:

1. The anti-CD28 antibody - a Superagonist. This antibody can stimulate T cell IL-2 production even in the absence of receptor engagement.

Product Code: ANC-177-820
Form: Pur/PF
Size: 100 µg

2. The line of Fab and F(ab’)2 fragments
F(ab)
Product Code: ANC-359-580 anti-CD152 (ANC152.2/8H5) F(ab)
Product Code: ANC-165-580 anti-CD16 (3G8) F(ab)
Product Code: ANC-144-580 anti-CD3ε (UCHT1) F(ab)
Product Code: ANC-181-580 anti-CD32 (7.3) F(ab)
F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-359-520 anti-CD152 (ANC152.2/8H5) F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-165-520 anti-CD16(3G8) F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-167-520 anti-CD18 (IB4) F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-177-520 anti-CD28 (ANC28.1/5D10) F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-144-520 anti-CD3ε (UCHT1) F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-181-520 anti-CD32 (7.3) F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-252-520 anti-CD62P (G1/G1-4) F(ab‘)2
Product Code: ANC-216-520 anti-CD64 (10.1) F(ab‘)2

3. Recombinant protein direct conjugates (such as CD40 muIg/PE) which bind, in flow cytometry or immunohistochemistry to their counter receptors across various species.
The CD40-muIg fusion protein blocks binding of anti-human CD40 to Raji human tumour cells.

Product Code: ANC-504-050
Form: R-PE
Size: 50 tests

Blood Controls for Flow Cytometry

2012-02-28T09:28:00.004Z

The quantitation of CD4+ cells in human blood by flow cytometry provides a vital tool in evaluating many human immunodeficiencies.

CD4 blood controls developed by Cytomark are stabilised preparations of human whole blood with known CD4 absolute counts. They are intended as daily run controls to ensure that sample processing, equipment and operators are all performing optimally thereby providing quality assurance in the immune monitoring of patients. CD4 blood controls are available in two clinically-relevant levels of CD4+ cells, a normal concentration and a low concentration.

Benefits of CD4 Blood Controls

Available in two formats, CD4 Low and CD4 Normal
Verification of monoclonal antibody and FACS reagents
Validation of flow cytometer performance
Validation of operator technique
Verification of red blood cell lysis

CF04-L - CD4 Low – 1.5ml vial
CF04-N - CD4 Normal – 1.5ml vial
CF04-Duo - CD4 Low & Normal – 2 x 1.5ml vials
Click here to download the product datasheet.

Bioss - Unconjugated and Conjugated Primary Antibodies

2012-02-21T12:15:00.010Z

Bioss, has a product portfolio including over 5,500 unconjugated primary antibodies. Plus a wide range of conjugated primary antibodies for flow cytometry analysis and other applications. For every primary antibody in the Bioss portfolio, the following conjugates are available: FITC, Cy3, Cy5, Cy5.5, Cy7, PE, PE-Cy3, PE-Cy5, PE-Cy7, HRP, Biotin and Gold.

To view the Bioss portfolio and sort by conjugate, species reactivity and/or application, download the catalogue in excel format here. Tested applications include ELISA, Flow Cytometry, Western Blot, IHC & IP. Species include human, mouse, rat, chicken, dog, horse, guinea pig and more.

More than 1000 of which recognise proteins with phosphorylation, acetylation, or methylation modifications. They also offer reliable loading controls and tag antibodies.

Samples Available
Some unconjugated antibodies are also available as samples – for a full list, of samples, please click here.

Popular products include:

Mouse Anti-TNF-alpha(1F6) Monoclonal Antibody
Product Code: bsm-0387m
Tumour Necrosis Factor Alpha (TNF alpha) is a protein secreted by lipopolysaccharide stimulated macrophages, and causes tumour necrosis when injected into tumour bearing mice. TNF alpha is believed to mediate pathogenic shock and tissue injury associated with endotoxemia. TNF alpha causes cytolysis or cytostasis of certain transformed cells, being synergistic with interferon gamma in its cytotoxicity. Although it has little effect on many cultured normal human cells, TNF alpha appears to be directly toxic to vascular endothelial cells. Other actions of TNF alpha include stimulating growth of human fibroblasts and other cell lines, activating polymorph nuclear neutrophils and osteoclasts, and induction of interleukin 1, prostaglandin E2 and collagenase production.

Mouse Anti-PSA(PA5) Monoclonal Antibody
Product Code: bsm-1626m
Kallikreins are a subgroup of serine proteases having diverse physiological functions. Growing evidence suggests that many kallikreins are implicated in carcinogenesis and some have potential as novel cancer and other disease biomarkers. This gene is one of the fifteen kallikrein subfamily members located in a cluster on chromosome 19. Its protein product is a protease present in seminal plasma. It is thought to function normally in the liquefaction of seminal coagulum, presumably by hydrolysis of the high molecular mass seminal vesicle protein. Serum level of this protein, called PSA in the clinical setting, is useful in the diagnosis and monitoring of prostatic carcinoma.

Rabbit Anti-Caspase-8 Polyclonal Antibody
Product Code: bs-0052R
Caspases are cysteine proteases, expressed as inactive precursors that mediate apoptosis by proteolysis of specific substrates. Caspases have the ability to cleave after aspartic acid residues. There are two classes of caspases involved in apoptosis; initiators (activation by receptor cluster) and effectors (activation by mitochondrial permeability transition). Pro-apoptotic signals autocatalytically activate initiator caspases, such as Caspase 8 and Caspase 9. Activated initiator caspases then process effector caspases, such as Caspase 3 and Caspase 7, which in turn cause cell collapse.

For more information about Bioss please see their supplier page.

Autoimmune Blistering Skin Disease

2012-02-20T15:58:00.007Z

MBL have launched a new CE marked ELISA Kit: An anti-type VII collagen ELISA for the diagnosis and monitoring of disease activity in patients with epidermolysis bullosa acquisita (EBA).

EBA is an autoimmune blistering skin disease characterized by the presence of IgG against Type VII Collagen. Type VII Collagen consists of a central collagenous domain flanked by an amino terminal non collagenous domain (NC1) and a carboxy terminal non collagenous domain (NC2). Major epitopes for anti-typeVII collagen autoantibodies reside in NC1 and minor epitopes in NC2 (Mei Chen et al, J.Biol. Chem. 276, p21649, 2001)

The anti-type VII collagen ELISA available from MBL recognises epitopes for autoantibodies in both the NC1 and NC2 domains and can specifically diagnose EBA patients with anti-type VII collagen autoantibodies. In addition, Kurei et al*, have shown that this ELISA reacts only with EBA sera and not with sera from bullous pemphigoid patients.

EBA and bullous pemphigoid are similar in terms of clinical symptoms, but the diseases are sometimes different in therapy, EBA cases often require high doses of systemic corticosteroids and a wide variety of immunosuppressants. Therefore it is important to distinguish EBA from bullous pemphigoid. The NC1 and NC2 ELISA from MBL is more clinically relevant than the NC1 ELISA currently employed in many clinics and is useful in the diagnosis of EBA patients.

*Please click here to see the publication by Kurei et al, demonstrating the reactivity of the anti-type VII collagen ELISA with sera from EBA and bullous pemphigoid patients.

Product Code: RG-7845E

Anti-TypeVII collagen ELISA Kit (CE Mark)

Price £244.

New Supplier of Ion Channel Blocker Peptides

2012-02-17T15:42:00.007Z

Wuhan More Biotechnology Co. Ltd was founded in 2008, to provide novel peptides for use in drug development and to make gene engineering peptide technology available to the biotech and pharmaceutical research communities.

The core technology area of the company is gene engineering, and includes peptide research, development and application. Wuhan More Biotechnology Co. works in partnership with Wuhan University, a prominent University in China for Gene Engineering, to maintain its knowledge in this core technology area.

Wuhan More Biotechnology Co. provides high quality ion channel blocker peptides to researchers. Each peptide is verified for pharmacological activity using whole cell patch-clamp experiments. Currently 26 ion channel blocker peptides are available (17 K+ Channel, 1 CI- Channel, 4 Ca2+ Channel, 2 ASIC Channels, 2 Na+ Channel), each containing between 2 to 5 pairs of disulfide bonds, purified to more than 98% and verified by mass spectrometry.

The ion channel blocker peptides available are recombinant peptides, synthesized following the analysis and subsequent construction of cDNA libraries of scorpion and sea anemone venom. The venom contains an array of enzymes and large proteins and is a rich source of toxic polypeptides containing 20-90 amino acid residues cross-linked by pairs of disulphide bridges. Most of these toxic polypeptides can specifically interact with Na+, K+, Cl-, Ca2+ ion channels to affect ion-channel function of excitable cells.

View ion channel blockers below by following their links:
K+ Channel Blockers
Cl- Channel Blockers
Na+ & Ca2+ Channel Blockers
ASIC Channel Blockers

To view Wuhan More Biotechnology’s complete range of products click here.

VASPIN – Potential Biomarker for Obesity

2012-02-16T10:34:00.001Z

Vaspin (Visceral adipose tissue-derived serpin; Serpin A12), a serine protease inhibitor (serpin), is an insulin-sensitizing adipocytokine that has been isolated from both visceral and subcutaneous white adipose tissue. Based on recent findings, vaspin is suggested to regulate immune responses and inflammation and was found to be correlated with various metabolic parameters.

Human vaspin blood levels are significantly increased in type 2 diabetes mellitus and obese patients. Thus vaspin may represent a novel biomarker for obesity and impaired insulin sensitivity and might serve as a new therapeutic target of metabolic syndrome.

Vaspin (human) ELISA Kit

Sensitivity: 12 pg/ml

Range: 0.016 to 1 ng/ml

Sample type: Serum, plasma, cell culture supernatant

Product Code: AG-45A-0017EK-KI01 (1 x 96 well plate)

Product Code: AG-45A-0017TP-KI01 (2 x 96 well plate)

Product Code: AG-45A-0017PP-KI01 (5 x 96 well plate)

Download the datasheet here.

RMS Flow Cytometry Course

2012-02-13T12:45:00.001Z

A residential course in Flow Cytometry for both beginners and more advanced users, held at the University of York.

16th – 20th July 2012 held at the University of York

Course Description

The course is constructed as a set of three modules. You can elect to attend the Course from between two to five days, depending on the Modules selected. The Modules consist of lectures interspersed with sessions in the laboratory. It is anticipated that instruments from three manufacturers will be available for practical work.

For Module 1, no prior knowledge of flow cytometry is assumed. It will give you a firm grounding in the basics of flow cytometry. There is also a strong emphasis on practical application and four practical sessions are included.

The later Modules assume that you have some basic knowledge of flow cytometry (which can be obtained by taking Module 1).

Module 2, Clinical Applications, will include practical sessions and lectures on applications including immunophenotyping leukaemias, quality control, applications to transplantation and blood transfusion, apoptosis, AIDS and cytokines.

Module 3, Applications in Cell Biology, will include a study of the DNA histogram and the cell cycle, measuring cell cycle kinetics in cultures and in tumours in vivo, using labelling with bromodeoxyuridine, the measurement of cell cycle related proteins, cytokines, apoptosis (including practical work) microbiology.

Download the course programme here.

For details on how to sign up for the course, please visit the RMS website.

On Wednesday 18th July we’ll be there at the exhibition trade show. Pop by and have a look at what flow products we have available. Learn about Infinicyt 1.6 the flow cytometry data manipulation software; TransFix®, a blood stabilisation solution; along with many more flow cytometry reagents.

We’re looking forward to seeing you there!

Infinicyt™ - Version 1.6 Now Available

2012-02-08T17:19:00.000Z

Infinicyt™ is a Flow Cytometry software that provides a revolutionary approach for data integration and multi-dimensional analysis of flow cytometry data. It allows a wide range of data analysis possibilities permitting a potentially infinite number of dimensions to be examined. Its innovative features make the analysis and interpretation of the results easier, faster and more accurate.

Merge different data files from one or more samples – multiple-tube analysis in a single step!

Calculate parameters not directly measured and multidimensional reconstruction with real and estimated data.

Integrated information is represented in an easy way with the most powerful tools for N-Colour analysis, statistics and reports.

Infinicyt™ software is provided by Cytognos, a biotechnology company committed to advancing flow cytometry through the design and development of new reagents, software and techniques.

The development of new, up-to-date software tools for the analysis and interpretation of complex multidimensional flow cytometry data, has become mandatory.

Infinicyt™ software was built in close collaboration between industry and academia through the EuroFlow project, as a new platform incorporating such required developments, in an attempt to make analysis and interpretation of flow cytometry data, easier and comprehensive. For this purpose, new and unique tools together with reference data have been incorporated into the software. Data derived from 8-colour, 10-parameter staining were employed for the design, implementation and evaluation of the developed features.

With the intention of improving the services offered to Infinicyt™ users, new tools and features have been added. New Developments in Version 1.6 include:

Manual Analysis Improvements

Batch Analysis

Compass

Click here to find out more.

See for yourself what Infinicyt™ can offer - download a one month free trial of Infinicyt ™ software here.

IL-18 Related Diseases and Research Areas

2012-01-31T10:56:00.001Z

Interleukin-18 (IL-18):

Interleukin 18 (IL-18) is an 18 kDa cytokine which is identified as a co stimulatory factor for production of interferon-g (IFN-g) in response to toxic shock. It shares functional similarities with IL-12. IL-18 is synthesized as a precursor 24 kDa molecule without a signal peptide and must be cleaved to produce an active molecule. IL-1b converting enzyme (ICE, caspase-1) cleaves pro-IL-18 at aspartic acid in the P1 position, producing the mature, bioactive peptide that is readily released from the cells. It has been reported that IL-18 is produced from dendritic cells, activated macrophages, Kupffer cells, keratinocytes, intestinal epithelial cells, osteoblasts, adrenal cortex cells and murine diencephalons.

IFN-g is produced by activated T and NK cells and plays critical roles in the defense against microbial pathogens. IFN-g activates macrophages, enhances NK activity and B cell maturation, proliferation and Ig secretion, induces MHC class I and II antigens expression, and inhibits osteoclast activation.

IL-18 acts on T helper 1-type (Th1) cells, and in combination with IL-12 strongly induces production of IFN-g by these cells. Pleiotropic effects of IL-18 have also been reported, including enhancement production of IFN-g and GM-CSF in peripheral blood mononuclear cells, production of Th1 cytokines, IL-2, GM-CSF and IFN-g in T cells, enhancement of Fas ligand expression by Th1 cells, anti-tumor effects, resistance to infection and a relationship with autoimmune diabetes.

IL-18 ELISA Kits

Human IL-18 ELISA Kit (Product Code: 7620)

Mouse IL-18 ELISA Kit (Product Code: 7625)

Recombinant IL-18

Click here to view MBL’s range of IL-18 proteins.

IL-18 Antibodies

View MBL’s range of IL-18 antibodies here.

Myeloid Nuclear Differentiation Antigen

2012-01-30T11:03:00.003Z

This anti-MNDA reagent is suitable for flow cytometry to diagnose myelodysplastic syndromes ("preleukemia").

Flow Cytometric Assessment of Myeloid Nuclear Differentiation Antigen (MNDA) Expression in the diagnosis of Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Unique features - MNDA

Unique product (Rat anti Human antibody
Anti-MNDA for using in the flow cytometry
Blood and bone marrow staining using flow cytometry (down-regulation of MNDA in cases of MDS)
Unique intracellular staining procedure using Intra-Cell™ (Trillium DiagnosticsLLC, USA), also distributed by IQ Products

The myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), formerly known as ‘preleukemia’, are a diverse collection of hematological (blood-related) medical conditions that involve ineffective production (or dysplasia) of the myeloid class of blood cells. Patients with MDS often develop severe anemia and require frequent blood transfusions. In most cases, the disease worsens and the patient develops low blood counts (cytopenias) due to progressive bone marrow failure. In about one third of patients with MDS the disease transforms into AML, usually within months to a few years. The MDS are all disorders of the stem cell in the bone marrow.

Definitive diagnosis and classification of Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) are often difficult because of variable presence of diagnostic criteria. An objective criterion that reliably distinguishes MDS from normal marrow would greatly facilitate diagnosis, and might contribute to sub classification of MDS.

Gene expression profiling has identified marked down-regulation of MNDA message in cases of MDS (1). Previously there is shown down-regulation of MNDA protein expression in random MDS cases using immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry (2).

Procedure

Blood or bone marrow staining method for anti-MNDA using Trillium Intra-Cell™ intracellular staining method. This method contains a fixation step with 10% formaldehyde, permeabilization step with Trillium Intra-Cell™ and a staining step with anti-MNDA FITC and a desired surface markers such as CD163 PE and CD45 PerCP.

MDNA - Pure - MNDA-3C1-U

MDNA - FITC - MNDA-3C1-F

Rat anti human MNDA (clone 3C1), available pure and FITC conjugated. Which was generated against aconcentrated nuclear protein extract prepared from late stage human myeloid leukaemia HL-60 cells.

Download the datasheet here.

NEW - Subtelomere FISH Probes, Chromosome FISH Probes, and Prenatal FISH Probes

2012-01-27T12:52:00.005Z

Abnova recently expanded its FISH catalogue with three new FISH probe product lines for cytogenetic research.

Subtelomere FISH Probes
Chromosome FISH Probes
Prenatal FISH Probes

Along with FISH probes for gene amplification, translocation, and split genes, Abnova now have a comprehensive collection of over 600 FISH probe products.
Customisation is also available if you need a FISH probe that isn't on the catalogue. Click here to inquire.

Subtelomere FISH Probes

The regions adjacent to telomeres are gene rich so rearrangements involving telomere adjacent DNA are more likely to have phenotypic consequences than rearrangements in many other parts of the genome. This is an area of the chromosome well worth investigating.
195 products to choose from

· Five fluorescent dyes to choose from for each probe

· Comes in 5X concentration formats, easy to multiplex and assay up to 5 probes in one experiment

Chromosome FISH Probes

These probes target sequence-specific regions adjacent to the centromere of each chromosome, allowing you to easily identify any human chromosome pair that you wish to study with minimum cross-reactivity with other chromosomes.
180 products to choose from

· Five fluorescent dyes to choose from for each probe

· Comes in 5X concentration formats, easy to multiplex

· Can be used in combination with Subtelomere FISH Probes

Prenatal FISH Probes
Most defects in infants are caused by numerical aberrations of chromosomes 13, 18, 21, X, and Y. Abnova's prenatal FISH probe collection targets these chromosomes and allows for rapid and accurate research of a wide range of chromosomal number aberrations.
See products here

MBL 20% off Skin Blistering Products

2012-01-23T16:52:00.008Z

Pemphigus and Bullous pemphigoid (BP) are distinct autoimmune blistering diseases that are characterised by the presence of autoantibodies directed against specific adesion molecules of the skin and mucous membranes. Pemphigus is divided into two major subtypes: Pemphigus vulgaris (PV) and Pemphigus foliaceus (PF).

For Detection of Autoantibodies against Desmoglein 1 & 3:

* MESACUP Desmoglein Test Dsg-1
Product Code: RG-7680EC-D
Now only £152.00

* MESACUP Desmoglein Test Dsg-3
Product Code: RG-7685EC-D
Now only £152.00

For Detection of Autoantibodies against BP180 & BP230:

* BP180 ELISA Kit
Product Code: RG-7695-EC-D
Now only £152.00

* BP230 ELISA Kit
Product Code: RG-7613EC-D
Now only £152.00

For the Detection of Epidermolysis Bullosa Acquisita (EBA):

* Anti-TypeVII Collagen ELISA Kit (CE marked)
Product Code: RG-7845E
Now only £244.00

Two New Kits from Arbor Assays

2012-01-20T15:30:00.011Z

Corticosterone CLIA Kit

Chemiluminescence Immunoassay (CLIA) are very similar to ELISA's however they are considered to be far superior to the ELISA's in terms of sensitivity and speed of the assay.

The main reason for that is the fact that ELISA's are based on colorimetric measurements or fluorescent reactions, while CLIAs employ the enzyme horseradish peroxidase (HRP) which is coupled to the specific antibodies reacting with the antigen of interest. The HRP in CLIA's produces a light of a specific wavelength, following the reaction with a specific substrate, the chemiluminescent signal. The detection limit is significantly lower than that for ELISA tests. This makes CLIAs useful for a number of research areas that have been inaccessible to this type of immunoassay, employing specific antibodies, due to concentrations of target proteins or chemicals lower than the detection limit for ELISAs.

Another advantage is that CLIAs require less time and do not demand the use of certain harmful reagents, such as stopping reagents. The intensity of the signal is proportional to the amount HRP enzyme bound via primary antibodies, which is proportional to the amount of target substance in the sample. The sensitivity and detection range far exceeds that of the average ELISA test.

The sensitivity of this corticosterone CLIA kit is 6.71pg/ml which is 4-5 fold lower than any other kits available.

All liquid reagents are stable at 4°C and the assay only takes 2 hours.

Product Code: K014-C1

Size: 1 x 96 well plate
Price: £192.00
Product Code: K014-C5
Size: 5 x 96 well plate
Price: £769.00

NEW Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2) Fluorescent Detection Kit

This kit allows the detection of extremely low levels of H2O2 in biological samples. The sensitivity is 0.038uM - lower than other kits available.

The kit contains all reagents and plates to measure 88 samples in duplicate. All liquid reagents are stable at 4°C.

Product Code: K034-F1
Price: £200.00

GPX3 – Promising Molecular Cancer Marker

2012-01-10T14:52:00.010Z

Glutathione peroxidase 3 (GPX3; GSHPX3) is a selenium-dependent extracellular enzyme, protecting cells and enzymes from oxidative damage by catalyzing the reduction of hydrogen peroxide, lipid peroxides and organic hydroperoxides.

GPX3 is involved in inflammatory bowel disease, in asthma and in diabetes. The activity of GPX3 is significantly reduced in the plasma and tissue of cancer patients. Recently, GPX3 was suggested to serve as a molecular marker for the diagnosis of clear cell type ovarian adenocarcinoma.

GPX3 (human) ELISA Kit

Sensitivity: 100 pg/ml
Range: 0.5 to 32 ng/ml
Sample type: Serum, plasma, cell culture supernatant

Product Code: AG-45A-0020EK-KI01 (1 x 96 well plate)
Product Code: AG-45A-0020TP-KI01 (2 x 96 well plate)
Product Code: AG-45A-0020PP-KI01 (5 x 96 well plate)
Download the datasheet here.

Also Available:
GPX3 (mouse) ELISA Kit
Product Code: AG-45A-0021

Merry Christmas!!

2011-12-21T12:22:00.021Z

Christmas Wishes from everyone at Caltag Medsystems!

As the festive season fast approaches we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your custom and wish you continued success though 2012.

Holiday Opening Hours

The office will close on Friday 23rd December and re-open again on Tuesday 3rd January 2012.

10% Off All Orders

Don't forget to place your order before 31st December 2011 to qualify for 10% off. Quote the code "MIND10" on your purchase order to receive this discount.

Did you know.....

The first decorated Christmas tree was erected in Riga, Latvia in 1510.
832 – The number of homes Santa visits every second to deliver all his presents.
Prince Albert, husband to Queen Victoria, brought the first Christmas tree to Windsor Castle in 1834.
The day after Christmas is known as Boxing Day. Not named for the sport, the name comes from the alms boxes that were emptied and given to the poor after Christmas.
The world’s largest Christmas present was the Statue of Liberty. The French gave it to the US in 1886. It is 46.5 meters high and weights 225 tons!
5340 – Average number of times Visa Cards are used every minute during Christmas time.
Since 1947 Oslo has sent an Xmas tree to London to thank us for our help in the Second World War.

We hope you enjoy your break and wish you all the very best for the coming year!

New Application for Analyzing Functionally Related miRNAs

2011-12-19T10:51:00.004Z

New technology to isolate and analyze intact RBP-mRNA-miRNA complexes.

RIP-Chip (ribonucleoprotein immunoprecipitation-microarray profiling) is a biochemical approach to identify the composition and organization of endogenous mRNAs, miRNAs and RNA binding proteins (RBPs) within messenger ribonucleoprotein (mRNP) complexes. RIP-Chip has been successfully employed to isolate AGO-containing RNPs by immunopurification with anti-AGO antibodies. When the co-isolated miRNA and mRNA subpopulations are analyzed using the computational predictions of conserved seed sequences, this approach provides a powerful tool to identify functional miRNA targets based on their physical interaction in vivo. RBPs have been reported to bind to mRNAs that encode functionally related proteins, and coordinately regulate these mRNAs during cellular processes. The RIP-Chip approach can isolate functionally related mRNAs. Since miRNAs can be co-immunoprecipitated with those mRNAs, the RIP-Chip approach can also isolate miRNAs that regulate specific group of mRNAs that are functionally related.

The new miRNA RIP-chip system is designed to identify miRNAs bound to their mRNA targets, analyze the maturation mechanism of miRNAs, identify RISC components and analyze their functions.

Recent studies suggest that mRNAs encoding functionally related protein and their regulatory microRNAs bind to the common RNA binding proteins (RBPs), forming so-called RiboClusters.

MBL’s RIP-Assay Kit for micro RNA enables you to immunoprecpitate RiboClusters through RBP specific antibodies and isolate the RNAs and their regulatory micro RNAs associated with the RiboCluster (RIP Assay). You can thus isolate cluster specific mRNAs as well as miRNAs for subsequent analysis by microarray, sequencing or RT-PCR.

miRNA Assay Kit

RIP-Assay Kit for microRNA – Product Code: RN1005

miRNA Validated Antibodies

Anti-EIF2C2/AGO2 – Product Code: RN003M

Click here to view RIP Assay Kits from MBL

Click here to view related antibodies from MBL

Reliable antigenemia test to detect active CMV infection

2011-12-16T11:04:00.008Z

CMV Brite™ Turbo

The antigenemia standard for CMV diagnosis and monitoring after transplantation

CMV infection in the healthy human, is usually subclinical. However, in the immunocompromised host and the developing foetus it may result in either localized or disseminated disease. Clinical manifestations of CMV disease include pneumonia, retinitis, hepatitis, enteritis, and neurological disease. Despite improved treatment modalities, CMV infection may result in significant morbidity and mortality. Patients are at risk from both primary CMV infection and reactivation of latent virus.

Early and rapid diagnosis of active CMV infection is of great importance in avoiding over-treatment with immunosuppressive drugs and in guiding antiviral therapy. The standard in CMV testing, antigenemia, is a non-culture technique that detects an active infection by blood sample analysis and is optimized for use in the CMV Brite™ and CMV Brite™ Turbo kit.

CMV Brite™, the first FDA registered immunofluorescence antigenemia kit for in vitro CMV diagnosis, uses the well defined C10/C11 antibody cocktail to detect the CMV lower matrix phosphoprotein (pp65), an early antigen in virus replication, which is abundantly present in antigen-positive polymorphonuclear cells (PMNs). The CMV Brite™ kit contains all the reagents and sample analysis is completed in 4 hours. The kit is available in 40 and 100 test format. The 40 test kit is designed for analysis of single patient samples per experiment, while in the 100 test kit more patient samples can be analyzed in parallel per experiment. A unique feature of this kit is the option for further susceptibility studies of the (positive) isolated PBMC fraction not possible with any other antigenemia kit. The CMV Brite™ Turbo kit, is a rapid version of the CMV Brite™ kit and results are obtained in 2 hours!

Special features of the CMV Brite™ Turbo Kit

A complete kit containing all the reagents needed from cell preparation to immunofluorescence staining.
A cocktail of antibodies specific for pp65. Antibodies C10/C11 are highly specific for pp65 and have been well documented (2,3,4,5).
Detection of CMV pp65 positive PMNs by indirect immunofluorescence gives high sensitivity and easy reading of the results.
The number of CMV pp65 positive cells are counted per duplicate stain.
Control slides are included. Each slide contains one negative and one positive control spot. The positive control spot is a combination of normal blood leukocytes and pp65 transfected cells.
Shelf life of at least 18 months.
Completed within 2 hours of sample collection.

Materials and reagents supplied in the CMV Brite™ Turbo Kit

Erythrocyte Lysing Solution
Fixative solution
Permeabilization solution
Mouse monoclonal antibody C10/C11 specific for CMV pp65
FITC conjugated sheep anti-mouse immunoglobulin with Evans Blue
Control slides. Each slide containing one negative and one CMV pp65 positive cytospot

Product Code: VIR-CMV 110

Applications for immunohistochemistry

2011-12-15T11:33:00.001Z

Next to the regular antibody products, Monosan can offer you Monosan Reagents. This product line contains a huge portfolio of detection systems for immunohistochemistry purposes like Monosan Plus (AP) Polymer Kits, Monosan Plus (HRP) Broad Spectrum Kits and Monosan (HRP) Broad Spectrum Kits. The Monosan Reagents detection kits are designed for the qualitative detection of antigens in fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections, in frozen tissue sections, and in cytological samples. (The kits are developed for use in combination with mono- and polyclonal primary antibodies and sera obtained from mouse, rabbit, rat, and guinea pig.)

Beside the new detection systems MONOSAN® Reagents is offering comprehensive accessories for the Immunohistochemistry:

Dilution buffers

Example:
MONOSAN®Antibody Diluent is developed for dilution of primary antibodies. Antibodies diluted with Antibody Diluent are primarily used in immunohistochemistry with formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections, but also with frozen, HOPE-fixed, and cytological samples as well as in immunoblot procedures.

Chromogens and Substrates

Example:
MONOSAN®Permanent AEC Kit is intended for immunohistochemical and in situ-hybridisation staining procedures with horse radish peroxidase (HRP). AEC (3-Amino-9-ethylcarbazol) leads to the formation of a red-brown precipitate at the location of the target antigen or target nucleic acid. The precipitate is insoluble in aqueous mounting media and can be observed by light microscopy.

Histo Pens

Pre-treatment solutions

Example:
MONOSAN® FastEnzyme is a ready-to-use solution developed for enzymatic epitope retrieval on formalin-fixed tissue sections on slides. This procedure (sometimes called PIER,Protease Induced Epitope Retrieval) is used in immunohistochemical staining procedures and prior to in situ hybridisations.

Blocking reagents

Example:
The blocking solution MONOSAN®Peroxide Block is intended for inhibition of endogenous peroxidase activity in tissue sections. It is primarily intended to be used in immunohistochemistry on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded samples if using a detection system with horse radish peroxidase.

Buffers

Example:
Monosan® HIER EDTA Buffer pH 8.0 is a solution developed for heat induced epitope retrieval (HIER) in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections on slides. This procedure is primarily used in immunohistochemistry.

Click here to view related products

Vascular endothelium: Role in disease pathogenesis & as a therapeutic target

2011-12-13T11:25:00.001Z

We will be exhibiting at the 14th Imperial College London Symposium - Vascular endothelium: Role in disease pathogenesis & as a therapeutic target to be held on 15th December 2011 at the W12 Conference Centre at the Hammersmith Hospital.

The event is co-organised by the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology and the Cardiovascular Medicine Unit of Imperial College London. As on previous occasions, it will bring together scientists and clinicians from basic and translational research, investigating the vascular endothelium in health, inflammation, cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Registration is open from 09:00 where coffee will be available and the presentations begin at 09:30 and the meeting will conclude at approximately 17:30.

Click here to view the agenda.

Please click here for more details.

USB Change-IT Multiple Mutation Site Directed Mutagenesis Kit

2011-12-12T17:00:00.008Z

Designed to create single or multiple oligonucleotide-directed sequence changes in plasmids.

Based on highly efficient exponential amplification using non-overlapping primers; eliminates primer-dimer formation
Create single or multiple mutations in plasmids
Create mutations in plasmids as large as 15 Kb
Create insertions, base changes, or deletions
Create deletions as large as 300 bp
Encode multiple base changes in a single primer
Three step process: amplification, DpnI digestion, and transformation
Single day method

Mutations are created using a variation of ligation during-amplificationin which the plasmid is PCR-amplified with phosphorylated primers and the product ends are ligated together to convert the annealed DNA strands into closed circular DNA molecules. These closed circular DNA molecules then become template molecules in subsequent rounds of the PCR amplification. The desired mutations (insertions, deletions, or substitutions) are created by incorporating them into the primer sequence. USB’s FideliTaq Polymerase is used to ensure faithful duplication of the plasmid sequence and successful longdistance PCR. Thermostable DNA ligase is utilized for efficient creation of circular plasmid DNA during each round of PCR amplification. Together these enzymes generate exponentially amplified, circular, mutated plasmid DNA. To enhance selection of the mutated plasmid from the parental plasmid, the PCR amplification reaction is digested with Dpn I prior to transformation into competent cells.

Product Code: USB-78480-20reactions

View more information here

miRNA Northern Blot Assay Kit

2011-12-09T15:34:00.001Z

Expression of miRNAs is highly regulated and tissue-specific. Many of miRNAs are differentially expressed in human cancers. Microarray profiling of miRNA expression leads to identification of differentially expressed miRNA in cancers. miRNA expression, tissue distribution, and microarray data validation often need northern blot analysis, with which the difference can be directly visualized, mature miRNA differentiated from its precursor, and the expression level of miRNA compared with internal controls such as U6 RNA. Signosis miRNA northern blot assay kits provide a non-radioactive, simple, and highly sensitive tool to conduct the assay.

miRNA northern blot assay kits offer the following benefits:

No isotope is required - it is a chemiluminescent-based detection.
No probe preparation - biotin pre-labelled probes are available.
All components in one kit - gel, membrane, and solutions for RNA transfer, hybridization, and detection are provided in the kits.
Simple procedure – the assay is simple and straightforward.

Technology
RNA samples are separated through gel electrophoresis and transferred onto a membrane. Expression of a specific miRNA is detected with a biotin-labelled probe. This regular Northern blot assay is suitable to most moderate to high expressors of miRNA. High sensitive Northern blot (NB-1001 and HP-XXXX) is needed to analyze low expressors of miRNA.

Product code: NB-0001
Download the datasheet here.

Human Cell Expression Really Does Matter

2011-12-08T13:30:00.001Z

Symansis offers a large range of human cell expressed (HCX) recombinant human proteins that closely mimic the natural human protein. Symansis’ proteins and receptors with true Glycosylation sites will optimise research and give you:

Better protein-protein interactions
Stability with in vitro and in vivo assays
Greater immunogenicity
No xenogenic material
Longer half life in culture
Free of bacterial lipopolysaccaride (LPS) which can be toxic to cells

Symansis’ proteins have human post-translational modifications and exposure of only natural epitopes. This means they may have different biological properties than non-human expressed proteins, due to correct protein folding, improved protein-protein interactions and stability.

Symansis also offers a wide range of human stem cell factors that are free of LPS, xenogenic material and exhibit longer half-life in culture media.

Symansis utilises conventional chromatography purification techniques to purify the proteins. No tag-based affinity chromatography techniques are used for ligands. Each protein has purity greater than 95% by silver stain, with most proteins >97% pure.

Symansis offer recombinant human proteins and receptors that can optimise your research and clinical applications including cancer, inflammation, obesity, neurobiology, apoptosis and stem cell research.

Click here to viewSymansis’s range of HCX proteins.

Adiponectin – Promising Biomarker of Metabolic Syndrome

2011-12-06T09:46:00.002Z

Adiponectin (ACRP30; AdipoQ) is a promising biomarker of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) but also as a potential target for management of the metabolic syndrome. It is a very robust marker that is not prone to degradation or acute inflammatory challenges, is present in relatively high concentrations in the peripheral circulation, and can be collected by a variety of methods.

The benefits of using adiponectin assays in clinical settings include:

prediction of risk of diabetes and metabolic status
providing a tool to monitor metabolic improvements

Adiponectin exerts anti-atherogenic & anti-inflammatory properties and may be important as a biomarker for obesity-related cardiovascular disease (CVD). New findings showed urinary adiponectin excretion as an independent new biomarker of microvascular and macrovascular damage in T2DM and suggested it as a very promising tool for early cardiovascular disease risk assessment. Adiponectin serum level was also described as a good biomarker of colorectal adenoma, this being related to the positive correlation between obesity and increased risk of cancer at various sites (colorectal, breast, prostate and endometrium).

Adiponectin (human) ELISA Kit

Product Code: AG-45A-0002EK-KI01 (1 x 96 well plate)

Product Code: AG-45A-0002TP-KI01 (2 x 96 well plate)

Product Code: AG-45A-0002PP-KI01 (5 x 96 well plate)

Download the datasheet here.

Other species available include mouse (AG-45A-0004) and rat (AG-45A-0005).

Adiponectin (human) Competitive ELISA Kit

Product Code: AG-45A-0002EK-KI01 (1 x 96 well plate)

Product Code: AG-45A-0002TP-KI01 (2 x 96 well plate)

Product Code: AG-45A-0002PP-KI01 (5 x 96 well plate)

Download the datasheet here.

Other species available include rhesus monkey, macaque (AG-45A-0003).

RiboTrap: Global Analysis of RNP clusters using RNA affinity tags

2011-12-05T09:50:00.004Z

The RiboTrap Kit from MBL is used to isolate RBPs and other proteins that are associated with mRNA, ribosomal RNA (rRNA), transfer RNA (tRNA), viral RNA, miRNA or any other RNA of interest from either the cytoplasmic or nuclear extract of cultured mammalian cells. Post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression plays important roles in most cellular processes such as development and metabolism and in many diseases such as cancer progression. RNP complexes are the fundamental units of post-transcriptional regulation of mRNA. RNA molecules, including mRNA and non-coding species such as microRNA (miRNA), exist in RNP complexes with specific RNA-binding proteins (RBPs). The RiboTrap Kit utilizes BrU-labeled mRNA to isolate the RBP bound to the gene of interest.

Principle of the RiboTrap Kit

The RNA of interest is modified with 5-bromo-UTP (BrUTP) by in vitro transcription, followed by incubation with a cell lysate (cytoplasmic extract or nuclear extract) to form the assembled RNA-RBP complexes. The BrU-labeled RNA-RBP complexes are then immunoaffinity-purified by anti-BrdU monoclonal antibody (mAb), which cross-reacts with BrUTP. RBPs associated with the BrU-labeled RNA can then be identified by immunoblotting or mass spectroscopy. Three different wash buffers provided in the RiboTrap Kit allow for analysis of both weakly and tightly bound RBPs. The wash buffer with mild conditions (Wash Buffer I) is usually used for primary screening of total RBPs, while wash buffer with stringent conditions (Wash Buffer II or III) is suitable for purifying tightly bound RBPs. Antisense RNA (corresponding to complementary RNA of interest) or truncated RNA of interest is used to exclude nonspecific binding proteins. Elution buffer composed of the optimal concentration of BrdU allows specific recovery of BrU-RNA/protein complexes. RBPs isolated with native conformations can be used in several downstream applications.

RiboTrap – Product Code: RN1011/RN1012

For more information on RiboTrap click here.

Epigenetic ELISA Kits from Abnova

2011-12-02T10:10:00.006Z

The field of epigenetic screening has become one of the most exciting areas of biological research and is increasingly becoming the focus of drug developments. Epigenetic mechanisms are inheritable factors that regulate genetic expression without changing the DNA sequence.

Factors such as post translational modifications on the N-terminal tails of histones or methylation on the cytosine of DNA can induce changes to chromatin structure, thereby regulating DNA expression. Abnormalities in this process play a critical role in many important human diseases, especially in cancer and metabolic diseases. Abnova provide robust and ready-to-use assay kits with specific antibodies and innovative detection methods that can shorten assay times.

Abnova Epigenetic Kit Categories:

DNA Methylation (10 Kits): Methyltransferase Assay, Demethylase Assay, Quantification, Capture

Histone Methylation (54 Kits): Methyltransferase Assay, Demethylase Assay, Quantification

Histone Acetylation (21 Kits): Acetyltransferase Assay, Deacetylase Assay, Quantification

Histone Phosphorylation (5 Kits): Quantification

Advantages of these Products:

Quick and efficient
Innovative colorimetric and fluorometric assays
Very sensitive, requiring very low amounts
Controls are conveniently included for quantification
Strip microplate format makes the assay flexible: manual or high throughput
Simple, reliable, and consistent assay conditions
In situ histone phosphorylation and methylation kits available (whole cell-based detection)

Note - These advantages apply to the majority of our kits. Please refer to product protocols for specific details.

Epigenetic Antibody Showcase:

Epigenetics Antibodies. 3541 antibodies for the study of heritable changes in gene function without DNA sequence change

Chromatin Regulation Antibodies. 1127 antibodies for histone, histone demethylases and chromatin structure modification

Histone Deacetylase Antibodies. 144 antibodies against enzymes that remove acetyl groups from histones

DNMT Antibodies. 20+ antibodies for DNA methyltransferase family to transfer a methyl group to DNA

ChIP Antibodies. 91 specific antibodies for Chromatin Immuno-precipitation, CIITA, ESR1, H3F3A, HDAC1, and more.

Caltag Medsystems is the UK distributor for Abnova, please visit www.caltagmedsystems.co.uk or call 01280827460 for UK pricing.

World AIDS Day

2011-12-01T10:23:00.010Z

World AIDS Day is held on 1 December each year and is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died. World AIDS Day was the first ever global health day and the first one was held in 1988.

More than 90,000 people are currently living with HIV in the UK and globally an estimated 33.3 million people have HIV. More than 25 million people between 1981 and 2007 have died from the virus, making it one of the most destructive pandemics in history.

Today, many scientific advances have been made in HIV treatment, there are laws to protect people living with HIV and we understand so much more about the condition. But despite this, people do not know the facts about how to protect themselves and others from HIV, and stigma and discrimination remain a reality for many people living with HIV. World AIDS Day is important as it reminds the public and Government that HIV has not gone away – there is still a vital need to raise money, increase awareness, fight prejudice and improve education.

HIV Facts

HIV stands for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. It is a virus which attacks the body's immune system — the body's defense against diseases.
HIV can be passed on through infected bodily fluids, most commonly via sex without a condom or by sharing infected needles, syringes or other injecting drug equipment.
There are now more people than ever living with HIV in the UK — more than 90,000 — with around a quarter of those unaware they have the virus.
Over 90% of people with HIV were infected through sexual contact
You can now get tested for HIV using a saliva sample
HIV is not passed on through spitting, biting or sharing utensils
Only 1% of babies born to HIV positive mothers have HIV
You can get the results of an HIV test in just 15-20 minutes
There is no vaccine and no cure for HIV

Show your support for people living with HIV on World AIDS Day by wearing a red ribbon, the international symbol of HIV awareness.

NAT has launched HIVaware – to remember the importance of raising awareness of HIV all year round.

To show your support and donate to World AIDS Day click here.

To view more information on World AIDS Day, HIV and the National AIDS Trust view the website.

ThromboStep – designed for quantitation of platelet associated immunoglobulin using flow cytometry

2011-11-30T16:06:00.004Z

Generally in humans, a normal platelet count ranges from 150,000 and 450,000 per ul. Thrombocytopenia is the presence of relatively few platelets in the blood. Decreased platelet counts can be due to a number of disease processes, the quantification of platelet associated immunoglobulin is a decreased ratio in platelet production or an increase in the ratio of destruction.

Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is an autoimmune disorder characterised by a low platelet count and mucocutaneous bleeding. The autoantibodies are directed primarily to the platelet-specific receptors CD41a (GPIIb/IIIa) and CD42b (GPIb). As a result the sensitised platelets are rapidly cleared by the monocyte-macrophage cell systems.

The determination of autoantibodies against thrombocytes allows differentiation of immune from non-immune thrombocytopenia.

The kit contains:

Monoclonal antibody anti CD41a PE
FITC polyclonal antibody to total human immunoglobulin
FITC polyclonal antibody to human IgA
FITC polyclonal antibody to human IgM
FITC polyclonal antibody to human IgG
FITC conjugated polyclonal antibody to total rabbit immunoglobulins
Washing Buffer

Product Code: TBS-50T

(CE Marked)

FETALtrol: Assayed whole blood controls for confident foetal cell detection in maternal circulation

2011-11-28T09:57:00.004Z

Laboratory determination of the level of foetal cells in maternal circulation remains an important support in the diagnosis and obstetrical management of women with suspected uterine trauma and in the proper dose administration of Rh Immune globulin (RhIg).

FETALtrol is an assayed, stabilized 3-level control set designed to validate and monitor the quality of procedures for the detection of Foeto-maternal haemorrhaging. It is compatible as a control for both manual (KBB) and flow cytometric methods.

“Good laboratory practice requires that controls be run with every batch of patient samples or at least once per day of analysis....Controls are ideally stabilized whole blood materials that can be used to provide precision monitoring of the analytical method.”

Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (formerly NCCLS) recommendations from document H52-A.

Key Benefits of FETALtrol:

FETALtrol is CE marked as an IVD according to ISO13485:2003 and has been cleared by the FDA as a haematologic control (IVD) for foetal red cell detection.
Eliminates the need to acquire cord blood and prepare 'home brew' controls, saving time and reducing exposure to untested potentially infectious material.
Assayed values at three levels serve as both a quality measure for the assay method, as well as a reference material for proper gating.
FETALtrol is a stabilized blood product that handles like patient blood samples.

Complimentary sample kits available - limited number. Email: sarah@caltagmedsystems.co.uk to request a kit.

Product Code: FH102 - FETALtrol Sample Kit Pack Size: 25; Complimentary, conditions apply*

Product Code: IQP-370 FT – FETALtrol Pack Size: 50 test kit; £205

Download FETALtrol product information sheet

FETALtrol Production Schedule available on request, please email office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk

*One complimentary kit per department. Limited stock available.

FETALtrol is an in vitro diagnostic reagent composed of D-antigen (Rho) negative human adult erythrocytes, supplemented with D-antigen (Rho) positive human cord blood erythrocytes.

Level 1 (N) - Normal or Negative

Level 2 (L) - Low Positive

Level 3 (H) - High Positive

Product Launch - OC-515 and CF Blue

2011-11-25T11:10:00.008Z

New antibodies conjugated with new fluorochromes and new antibodies premixed derived from EuroflowTM.

Main characteristics of OC-515 and CF Blue:

Compatible with the standard filter sets of cytometers equipped with violet laser
Emission spectrum is narrow and well separated. Optimal stain index.

Both reagents are under the validation of the Euroflow and will be added to the recommended Euroflow reagents list. Reagents achieve the necessary quality to use in the study of biological samples such as Human Peripheral Blood or Human Bone Marrow.

OC-515 - an alternative to Pacific Orange

Does not present excitation detected in the 488nm laser, needs minimal compensation requirements

New reagents available conjugated with OC-515:

Product Code: CYT-45OC

CD45OC-515 (clone GA90, isotype IgG2a)

Product Code: CYT-138OC

CD138OC-515 (clone B-A38, isotype IgG1)

CF Blue - an alternative to Pacific Blue

New reagents available conjugated with CF Blue:

Product Code: CYT-3CFB

CD3CF Blue (clone GA60, isotype IgG1)

Product Code: CYT-4CFB

CD4CF Blue (clone H2P/6, isotype IgG2a)

Product Code: CYT-20CFB

CD20CF Blue (clone LT20, isotype IgG2a)

Highlights from the MONOSAN Xtra range

2011-11-22T16:42:00.002Z

Product Code: MONX10334 - CD5 Clone 4C7

CD5 antigen is expressed in 95 per cent of thymocytes and 72 per cent of peripheral blood lymphocytes. In lymph nodes, the main reactivity is observed in T cells. CD5 antigen is expressed by many T cell leukaemias, lymphomas and activated T cells. CD5 antigen is also expressed on a subset of B cells. Reactivity can be observed on occasional cells in B cells of normal lymph nodes, in particular, mantle zones. MONX10334 is recommended for the identification of mantle cell lymphomas. Antibodies to CD5 may prove to be of particular use in the detection of T cell acute lymphocytic leukaemias (T-ALL), some B cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemias (B-CLL) as well as B and T cell lymphomas.

Product Code: MONX10353 - CD10 Clone 56C6

Recommended for the research of small B-cell lymphomas and the subtyping of lymphoblastic leukemias.

Product Code: MONX10110 - Estrogen Receptor and Progesteron Receptor (duo pack)

Clones 6F11 & 16 Clone 6F11 is recommended for determining the estrogen receptor alpha status of breast cancer tissue. Clone 16 is recommended for determining the progesterone receptor alpha status of breast cancer tissue. A and B forms are detected in Western blotting procedures but only the A form is detected in immunohistochemical procedures.

Product Code: MONX10584 - TTF-1 Clone SPT24

Recommended for use in the classification of tumors of the thyroid and lung.

Product Code: MONX10221 - c-erbB-2 oncoprotein, Clone CB11

Specific binding has been demonstrated by immunoprecipitation with c-erbB-2 oncoprotein SKBr3 cells. MONX10221 is recommended for determining the c-erbB-2 oncoprotein status of breast and bladder cancers.

Product Code: MONX10320 - CD3 Clone PS1

Recommended to be used as part of a panel of antibodies to indicate T cell phenotype in lymphoproliferative disorders.

suPARnostic® - a Unique Prognostic Biomarker

2011-11-18T10:26:00.005Z

suPAR (soluble urokinase plasminogen activating receptor) is a protein in the blood. The plasma level of suPAR reflects immune activation and is increased in several infectious diseases. High suPAR levels are associated with increased inflammation, disease progression and fatal outcome.

Measuring suPAR levels can serve as a marker to monitor disease progression and treatment [Ref. 1-6].

suPARnostic® is a Risk Status Marker, providing additional information regarding a patient, and acting as a master alarm for a patient’s risk status. An elevated suPARnostic® level reflects a developing critical condition.

suPAR levels can be measured easily with the novel suPARnostic® ELISA kit. This is a CE/IVD approved kit providing fast and reproducible results. By measuring an individual’s suPARnostic® level, the prognosis can be supported, the need for therapy is indicated and the effect of treatment can be monitored.

The suPARnostic® ELISA Assay is a simplified double monoclonal antibody sandwich assay where samples and peroxidase-conjugated anti-suPAR are mixed in white microwells prior to incubation in anti-suPAR precoated optically clear microwells. Performing the suPARnostic® ELISA involves two antibodies with high specificity for suPAR. The plasma sample with an unknown amount of suPAR is immobilized on the microwells on the clear microtiter plate and a detection antibody form a complex with suPAR.

Product Code: A001 - suPARnostic® Standard ELISA Assay

Product Code: A002 - suPARnostic® Flex ELISA Assay

Read more about suPARnostic®:

References:

Sidenius N, Sier CFM, Ullum H, Pedersen BK, Cozzi LA, Blasi F, and Eugen-Olsen J, (2000) The American Society of Hematology, 96, 4091-4095
Wittenhaugen P, Kronborg G, Weis N, Nielsen H, Obel N, Pedersen SS, and Eugen-Olsen J, (2004) European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, 10, 409-415
Østergaard C, Benfield T, Lundgren JD, and Eugen-Olsen J, (2004) Scand J Infect Dis, 36, 14-19
Kofoed K, Eugen-Olsen J, Petersen J, Larsen K, and Andersen O, (2008) Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis
Ostrowski SR, Ullum H, Goka BQ, Høyer-Hansen G, Obeng-Adjei G, Pedersen BK, Akanmori BD, and Kurtzhals JAL, (2005) The Journal of Infectious Diseases, 191, 1331-1341
Eugen-Olsen J, Gustafson P, Sidenius N, Fischer TK, Parner J, Aaby P, Gomes VF, Lisse I, (2002) Int J Tuberc Lung Dis, 6, 686-692

Mini-Exhibition at CIMR

2011-11-17T10:15:00.011Z

We will be at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research (CIMR) next Wednesday 23rd November from 10-4pm, why not come along and visit us.

About the CIMR

The Cambridge Institute for Medical Research (CIMR) is a cross-departmental institute, within the University of Cambridge Clinical School, that is housed in the Wellcome Trust/MRC Building on the Addenbrooke's Hospital Site of the Cambridge Biomedical Campus.

It provides a unique interface between basic and clinical science that underpins its high level objective of determining and understanding the molecular mechanisms of disease. Currently, CIMR comprises approximately 250 scientists, about a quarter of who are graduate students.

They are organised into around 40 research groups each led by a Principal Investigator (PI) who, along with their group members, is also a member of one of seven home University departments (Medicine, Pathology, Medical Genetics, Clinical Biochemistry, Haematology or Clinical Neurosciences).

We’ll be located on Level 7 outside the lounge area. For your chance to win one of 5 Christmas Chocolate treats, pop by and visit us.

For more information on this mini-exhibition email: office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk.

PrepEase® RNA Purification

2011-11-16T16:25:00.003Z

USB offers a comprehensive line of PrepEase® RNA purification products for total RNA, mRNA and RNA clean-up. These reliable products provide high purity RNA suitable for sensitive downstream applications such as qRT-PCR, northern blotting, and microarray analysus. PrepEase® Kits are capable fo isolating RNA from samples including mammalian cells and tissues, yeast, bacteria, and plant cells. USB provides a complete solution for highly sensitive expression analysis with HotStart-IT® qRT-PCR reagents and PrepEase® RNA purification products.

PrepEase® RNA Spin Kit – for purification of total RNA from mammalian cells and tissues, bacteria and yeast.

Product Codes: USB-78765 (10 preps); USB-78766 (50 preps); USB-78767 (250 preps)

PrepEase® Plant RNA Spin Kit – for purification of total RNA from plant cells and filamentous fungi.

Product Codes: USB-78770 (20 preps), USB-78771 (50 preps)

PrepEase® RNA SVE Spin Kit – for purification of concentrated total RNA from small starting samples (<5x105 cells or < 5mg tissue) with a Small Volume Elution as little as 5ul.

Product Codes: USB-78772 (10 preps); USB-78773 (50 preps); USB-78774 (250 preps)

Other PrepEase® products available:

• PrepEase® RNA/Protein Spin Kit

• PrepEase® RNA Clean-Up Kit

• PrepEase® mRNA MiniSpin Kit

• PrepEase® Total RNA 96-well Plate Kit

Fastlink Conjugation Kits for One-Step Antibody Labelling

2011-11-15T14:38:00.005Z

• One-step process

• 30 seconds hands-on time

• Reproducible

• Scalable from µg to mg

• 100% recovery

Abnova have recently brought the Fastlink range of innovative antibody labelling and conjugation kits to the market. These kits allow elimination of the separation steps associated with antibody and protein labelling. The mixture of conjugate stabilizers and enzyme labels are provided in a lyophilized format. Addition of the antibody or protein solution to be labelled is required. Excess reactive chemicals then decay over several hours and by-products are benign in immunoassays.

Hands-on time for antibody conjugation is reduced to 30 seconds, and the performance of these enzyme-conjugated antibodies are as good as, or better than, those prepared with labour-intensive multistep conjugation protocols.

The overall procedure is completed within one vial, so this technique can be used to label small quantities of protein with 100% recovery, significantly minimizing the initial reagent amount and lowering development costs.

In traditional multistep protocols, 30 to 40 parameters need to be tightly controlled, impacting yield and reproducibility. Now, with the one-step labelling technology, researchers need only to control a few conjugation parameters, so the conjugation reactions are also relatively easy to scale up.

Fastlink Labelling Kits Available include:

Enzymes, Fluorescent Proteins, Fluorescent Dyes, Biotin, and Streptavidin

Applications include:

Western-Blotting, Immunohistochemistry, Immunofluorescence, ELISA, FACS, FRET

View the full range of labels available by clicking here.

World Diabetes Day - 14th November 2011

2011-11-14T10:19:00.004Z

World Diabetes Day was jointly introduced by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Diabetes Federation (IDF). The global diabetes awareness campaign was introduced amidst concern over an escalating diabetes epidemic.

November 14th is a significant date in the diabetes calendar because it marks the birthday of the man who co-discovered insulin, Frederick Banting. Banting discovered insulin in 1922, alongside Charles Best.

World Diabetes Day is internationally recognised and is now an official United Nations Day.

Diabetes Facts

• Diabetes is really called Diabetes Mellitus

• 2.6 million people in the UK have diabetes

• More than 180 million people worldwide have diabetes

• Type 1 diabetes is managed using insulin injections or an insulin pump

• 90% of people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes

• Type 2 diabetes is managed by diet, exercise and sometimes medication and insulin

Caltag Medsystems provide a number of diabetes research reagents. Here are some of the most popular ones with our customers…

Adiponectin ELISA Kit - a biomarker of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Read more.

RBP4 ELISA Kit - retinol binding protein 4 is a marker for insulin resistance and microalbuminuria in insulin-resistant subjects. Read more.

FTO ELISA Kit – FTO (fat-mass and obesity-associated gene) and type-2 diabetes have been shown to have a confirmed association. The presence of the FTO rs9939609 allele has been found to positively correlate with other symptoms of the metabolic syndrome, including higher fasting insulin, glucose, and triglycerides, and lower HDL-cholesterol. Read more.

TransFix® from Cytomark

2011-11-08T11:57:00.007Z

TransFix® is a preservative solution that maintains cellular integrity while at the same time preserving antigenicity. It can be used to preserve and stabilise body fluids including blood, CSF, bone marrow and fine needle aspirates. TransFix® treated samples are stable for up to 10 days when stored at 40C. TransFix® has been used extensively in the immune monitoring of HIV patients and in immunophenotyping. The launch of 3ml and 10ml vacuum blood collection tubes containing TransFix/EDTA has led to extensive use by clinical research organisations in support of international clinical trials.

Orfao et al (2009) researched the diagnosis of Leptomeningeal Disease and found that in up to 40% of samples cell lysis occurs before the sample can be tested . When stabilised with TransFix® all cell bearing samples can be diagnosed. This led to the conclusion that failure to use a preservative could result in 30% of adverse pathologies not being reported due to cell lysis.

Free samples are available for validation testing – please email office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk for more information. For more information, publications and resources check out our website.

Orfao, A. et al (2009) ‘Identification of Leptomeningeal Disease in Aggressive B-Cell Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma: Improved Sensitivity of Flow Cytometry’, Journal of Clinical Oncology, vol. 27, no. 9, 1462-1469

Download this journal here.

Diabetes and Obesity Conference, 10th November 2011

2011-11-07T14:29:00.005Z

We will be exhibiting at the Diabetes and Obesity conference at the Sir Ambrose Fleming Lecture Theatre, UCL on Thursday 10th November.

The meeting includes lectures from top specialists in the field;

Defining and measuring the metabolic syndrome: trends in prevalence of cardio-metabolic syndrome. Professor Sir George Alberti, Imperial College London
Drug induced obesity: mechanisms and metabolic implications. Professor Gavin Reynolds, Sheffield Hallam University
The efficacy of incretin based medications for the treatment of obesity type 2 diabetes. Professor John Wilding, University of Liverpool
Fitness or weight loss: results of a lifestyle intervention programme in patients with established diabetes. Dr Robert Andrews, University of Bristol
And many more…!

For full details on the programme and details of how to register, please visit this website.

We look forward to seeing you there!

HSV1-G and HSV2-G (Herpes Simplex Virus types 1 and 2) antibody test systems from MBL

2011-11-03T16:19:00.013Z

The MBL-BION HSV1-G and HSV2-G (Herpes Simplex Virus types 1 or 2) antibody test systems are indirect fluorescent antibody assays for the qualitative and/or semi-quantitative determination of HSV IgG antibodies in human serum. They are intended for use as an aid in the diagnosis of primary infection, reinfection or reactivation of the latent virus, and also as a determination of immunological experience with HSV.

HSV1-G Positive HSV1-M Positive

The indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) assay methods used in these test systems are carried out in two basic reaction steps:

Step 1 - Human serum is reacted with the antigen substrate. Antibodies, if present, bind to the antigen forming stable antigen-antibody complexes. If no antibodies are present, the complexes are not formed and serum components will be washed away.

Step 2 - Fluorescein labelled antihuman IgG antibody is added to the reaction site which binds with the complexes formed in step one. This results in a positive reaction of bright apple-green fluorescence when viewed with a fluorescence microscope. If no complexes are formed in step one, the fluorescein labelled antibody is washed away, exhibiting a negative result.

The indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) assay method is a solid phase immunoassay and has an advantage over other methods of HSV antibody detection in that it is sensitive and it is able to differentiate between the various antibody classes.

Kits and Kit Components

HSV-1 IgG Antibody 120 Test Kit. Product Code: HS1G-120
HSV-2 IgG Antibody 120 Test Kit. Product Code: HS2G-120
HSV-1 Substrate Slide, twelve wells. Product Code: HS1-3012
HSV-2 Substrate Slide, twelve wells. Product Code: HS2-4012
HSV IgG Positive Control Serum, 0.5 ml. Product Code: HSG-3520
HSV Negative Control Serum, 0.5 ml. Product Code: HSN-3510
Conjugate, IgG with Counterstain, 3.5 ml. Product Code: CCG-9972
Mounting Medium, 3.5 ml. Product Code: MM-9985
PBS Packet, One Litre, Product Code: PBS-9990

ELISA Kits from Uscn

2011-11-01T13:56:00.004Z

Uscn have a vast range of ELISA kits. This blog gives you a little more information about a few of their top sellers.

ELISA Kit for Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF)

CTGF is a cysteine-rich, matrix-associated, heparin-binding protein. In vitro, CTGF mirrors some of the effects of TGF beta on skin fibroblasts, such as stimulation of extracellular matrix production, chemotaxis, proliferation and integrin expression. CTGF can promote endothelial cell growth, migration, adhesion and survival and is thus implicated in endothelial cell function and angiogenesis.

CTGF binds to perlecan, a proteoglycan which has been localised in synovium, cartilage and numerous other tissues. CTGF has been implicated in extracellular matrix remodelling in wound healing, scleroderma and other fibrotic processes, as it is capable of up regulating both matrix metalloproteinases and their inhibitors.

Product Code: E90010Hu

Download the manual here.

ELISA Kit for Platelet Activating Factor (PAF)

PAF is a potent phospholipid activator and mediator of many leukocyte functions, including platelet aggregation, inflammation, and anaphylaxis. It is produced in response to specific stimuli by a variety of cell types, including neutrophils, basophils, platelets, and endothelial cells. Several molecular species of platelet-activating factor have been identified which vary in the length of the O-alkyl side chain. It is an important mediator of bronchoconstriction. It causes platelets to aggregate and blood vessels to dilate. Thus it is important to the process of hemostasis. At a concentration of 10-12M, PAF causes life threatening inflammation of the airways to induce asthma like symptoms. Toxins such as fragments of destroyed bacteria induce the synthesis of PAF, which causes a drop in blood pressure and reduced volume of blood pumped by the heart, which leads to shock and maybe death.

Product Code: E90526Hu

Download the manual here.

ELISA Kit for Fibroblast Growth Factor 23 (FGF23)

FGF23 is located on chromosome 12 and is composed of three exons. Mutations in FGF23 that render the protein resistant to proteolytic cleavage leads to increased activity of FGF23 and the renal phosphate loss found in the human disease autosomal dominant hypophosphatemic rickets. FGF23 is also overproduced by some types of tumours, causing tumour-produced osteomalacia. Loss of FGF23 activity is thought to lead to increased phosphate levels and the clinical syndrome of familial tumour calcinosis. This gene was identified by its mutations associated with autosomal dominant hypophosphatemic rickets. Prior to discovery in 2000, it was hypothesized that a protein existed which performed the function of FGF23. This putative protein was known as phosphatonin.

Product Code: E90746Hu

Download the manual here.

MONOSAN Xtra Detection Systems

2011-10-31T10:55:00.007Z

The Monosan® Polymer Detection Systems utilize a novel controlled polymerization technology to prepare polymeric HRP-linker antibody conjugates. Therefore, the problem of non-specific staining that can occur with Streptavidin/Biotin detection systems due to endogenous biotin does not occur.

These products are used in an immunohistochemical (IHC) procedure, which allows the qualitative identification by light microscopy of antigens in sections of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue, via sequential steps with interposed washing steps. If required by the primary antibody, sections are subjected to epitope retrieval prior to staining. Endogenous peroxidase activity is neutralized using the Peroxidase Block (Product Code: MON-APP145).

This is followed by application of Protein Block to reduce non-specific binding of primary and polymer. The section is subsequently incubated with optimally diluted primary antibody. Monosan® Post Primary Block is used to enhance penetration of the subsequent polymer reagent. The Monosan® Polymer recognizes mouse and rabbit immunoglobulins, it detects any tissue-bound primary antibody. Sections are further incubated with the substrate/chromogen, 3,3’ - diaminobenzidine (DAB), prepared from Monosan® DAB Chromogen and Monosan® DAB Substrate Buffer (Polymer), as described below. Reaction with the peroxidase produces a visible brown precipitate at the antigen site. Sections are counterstained with Hematoxylin and coverslipped. Results are interpreted using a light microscope and aid in the differential diagnosis of pathophysiological processes, which may or may not be associated with a particular antigen.

For more product information click here.

NCRI Cancer Conference

2011-10-28T10:42:00.006+01:00

On 6th-8th November 2011 we will be in Liverpool exhibiting at the National Cancer Research Institute Cancer Conference.

NCRI held its first national cancer conference, covering all aspects of cancer research, in 2005 and has since become an annual event. It aims to encourage the sharing of knowledge, ideas and best practice, and to promote cross-disciplinary collaboration.

The National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) is a UK-wide partnership between the government, charity and industry which promotes co-operation in cancer research among the 22 member organisations for the benefit of patients, the public and the scientific community.

The NCRI Cancer Conference is the major forum in the UK for showcasing the best British and international cancer research being held at The BT Convention Centre in Liverpool, from 6-9 November. As in previous years, the Conference brings together the leading experts across all disciplines and will involve a mix of high quality plenary speakers, symposia, and parallel sessions, together with poster sessions and industry-sponsored commercial workshops, over a period of four days.

For more information on this conference visit the website.

To view the programme click here.

Prof. Nic Jones, Chief Scientist of Cancer Research UK and Director of the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, discusses the highlights of the 2011 NCRI Cancer Conference programme. As Chair of the 2011 Conference Programme Committee, he presents an exciting insight on the Conference and why professionals involved in all areas of oncology should attend.

View this video here.

DLL1 & DLK1 - Key Ligands of the Notch Signalling Pathway

2011-10-27T16:39:00.004+01:00

The Notch signalling pathway is essential for cell differentiation and cell fate decisions. The components have been associated with various disorders such as cancer, leukaemia, immune disorders, developmental syndromes, stroke, cognitive symptoms and metabolic disorders.

Delta-like Protein 1 (DLL1) is essential for postnatal arteriogenesis and contributes to tumour progression. DLL1 is involved in differentiation and self-renewal of adipocyte stem cells. Thus the measurement of soluble DLL1 in serum or plasma is like to provide a novel indication of disease status in metabolic dysfunctions.

Protein Delta homolog 1 (DLK1) is a regulator of adipocyte differentiation found in serum and urine. Levels of soluble DLK1 affect negatively or positively adipogenesis and control mesenchymal cell fate. ALK1 is frequently up regulated in myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) patients compared to non- leukemic individuals.

DLL1 Soluble ELISA Kit (human) - Potential Biomarker for Metabolic Disorders

Product Code: AG-45A-0027
Download the datasheet here.

DLK1 Soluble ELISA Kit (human) - Potential Biomarker for

Metabolic Disorders

Product Code: AG-45A-0032

Download the datasheet here.

Special Offer on Multi-Kinase ELISA Array Kits from Symansis

2011-10-25T10:48:00.002+01:00

Discounts Off Symansis Multi-Kinase ELISA Array Kits.

The Symansis’ MKA ELISA kits provide an easier and faster alternative than traditional western blots (NEW 2.5 hour protocol), have a significantly greater dynamic range and sensitivity than western blots, can operate with much less sample (5-20 micrograms total protein), and are more cost-effective than westerns with up to six data points per assay if desired. The kits are designed to demonstrate the qualitative differences in the amounts of specific target proteins between samples.

For more information regarding this offer click here or please email office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk.

ECP/EDN ELISA: Eosinophil and bronchial asthma

2011-10-21T09:57:00.005+01:00

The pathology of bronchial asthma suggests bronchial inflammation is mainly caused by leukocytes and eosinophils.

Eosinophils and leukocytes are recognized as permeating tunica mucosa bronchiorum in patients with chronic bronchial asthma in both atopic and non-atopic conditions. When stimulated, the respiratory epithelial cells induce production and release various cytokines. Cytokines such as granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factors (GM-CSF) retain biological activities for eosinophils; their activities can include maturity, differentiation, migration and life prolongation. Activated eosinophils secrete granular proteins that injure and exfoliate the respiratory epithelium. They also release active oxygen with the ability of injuring cells, which can constrict bronchial smooth muscle and platelet-activating factors attractive for eosinophils and neutrophils. As a result, these substances cause bronchoconstriction, hyper transmission of blood vessels and hypersecretion of mucus.

Eosinophil Cationic Protein (ECP), Eosinophil Derived Neurotoxin (EDN) and Major Basic Protein (MBP) are known to be major protein-mediators derived from activated eosinophils. Activated eosinophils play an important role in inflammatory processes especially in allergic diseases. The levels of eosinophil activation can serve as complementary data for monitoring asthma inflammation. As ECP/EDN proteins are secreted from activated eosinophils they can become markers of eosinophil activation and degranulation which can cause inflammatory disease of the airway.

ECP ELISA Kit – Product Code: RG-7618EC-D

No cross reactivity with EDN
For use with human serum samples

EDN ELISA Kit – Product Code: 7630

No cross reactivity with ECP
For use with human serum samples

The Paterson Institute for Cancer Research Vendor Day

2011-10-20T10:49:00.003+01:00

On 26^th October 2011 we will be in Manchester at the Paterson Institute for Cancer Research, why not come along and visit us.

The Paterson Institute for Cancer Research is a leading cancer research institute within the University of Manchester, core funded by Cancer Research UK, the largest independent cancer research organisation in the world. Research spans the whole spectrum of cancer research, from programmes investigating molecular and cellular basis of cancer, to those focussed on translational research and development of therapeutics.

The Institute supports a number of investigative programmes, spanning both basic and translational cancer research. It has excellent laboratory facilities and outstanding core services, including microarrays, confocal microscopy, bioinformatics, histology, and access to mass-spectrometry based proteomics.

The Institute works in close collaboration with The Christie Hospital and is a partner in the newly formed Manchester Cancer Research Centre. Their aim is to gain a greater understanding of the fundamental basis of how cancer develops and apply that knowledge to develop new diagnostic tests, potential treatments and better ways to predict the outcomes.

We will be located in the coffee room, from 10am – 4pm, so don’t be shy, come and see us for your chance to win a spooky Halloween treat!

For more information on this vendor day email: enquiries@picr.man.ac.uk or office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk

ELRIG - Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine

2011-10-19T11:34:00.005+01:00

Visit us at stand 21 on 8^th November in Hinxton Hall, Cambridge. This conference, Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, will highlight state of the art research and technology enabling the provision of stem cells, their differentiation into desired cell types as well as applications as potential therapeutic agents.

The provision of Stem Cells and their derived progeny is one of the most promising high impact developments in modern medical science. In pharmaceutical research they have been harnessed to provide a plethora of highly characterised cells for a wide range of applications. More direct applications of stem cells are also enabling the development of a whole new field of therapy, Regenerative Medicine, focusing on the underlying causes of diseases by effectively replacing or regenerating the damaged cells themselves.

Registration for this event is FREE. Follow this link to register your details.

Speaker programme includes:

“Stem cells and the applications to regenerative medicine and drug testing” – Malcolm Alison, QMUL

“Optimising the production of Red Blood Cells from haematopoietic stem cells” – Katie Glen, Loughborough University

“Human embryonic stem cells derived hepatocytes and bioartificial liver development” – Sebastian Greenhough, Edinburgh University

“Towards regeneration of the ocular surface” – Julie Daniels, UCL

To view the full speaker programme and for more information about this event, please go to the ELRIG website.

Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism ELISA's from Symansis

2011-10-18T09:26:00.008+01:00

Symansis have a new range of ELISA kits for research within the areas of diabetes, obesity and metabolism. These include insulin, fatty acid binding protein and FGF-21 ELISA arrays.

Fatty Acid Binding Protein 4/aP2 Human ELISA Array

Product code: EFABP4SY

Fatty-acid binding protein 4 (FABP4), also termed adipocyte fatty-acid binding protein (A-FABP), or aP2, is a novel adipocyte-expressed factor which accounted for ~6% of total cellular proteins. Several animal experiments suggested that FABP-4 plays a key role in the link between obesity and various features of metabolic syndrome. Mice with targeted disruption of FABP-4 accompany FABP-5 almost completely protect against diet-induced obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes, and fatty liver disease. Studies in humans found FABP-4 serum levels were significantly increased in overweight and obese subjects, which predicted the risk to develop a metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. Additionally, serum FABP-4 levels were associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, carotid atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease.

Download the datasheet here.

FGF-21 ELISA Arrays

Product code: EFGFSY (human)

Product code: EMFGFSY (mouse/rat)

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF-21) is a novel protein that has been implicated in the regulation of lipid and glucose metabolism under fasting and ketotic conditions. In murine models, FGF-21 is predominantly expressed in liver, but it also expressed in adipose tissue and pancreatic ß-cells. FGF-21 stimulates glucose uptake in adipocytes. It also protects animals from diet-induced obesity when overexpressed in transgenic mice and lowers blood glucose and triglyceride levels when administered to diabetic rodents. Furthermore, elevated plasma FGF-21 concentrations in humans appear to be related to the presence of hepatic and peripheral insulin resistance.

Download the datasheet here – Human & Mouse/Rat

Insulin ELISA Arrays

Ultra Sensitive Insulin Kits

Product code: EUSRISY (rat)

Product code: EUSMISY (mouse)

These kits are designed for the quantitative determination of insulin in rat/mouse serum and plasma in lean/healthy rats and mice as the level of insulin is extremely low. The ultra-sensitive kit is too sensitive to be used for obese/hit fat rat model systems.

Download the datasheet here.

High Sensitive Insulin Kits

Product code: EHSRISY (rat)

Product code: EHSMISY (mouse)

Kits are designed for the quantitative determination of insulin in rat/mouse serum and plasma from high fat diet-induced obese rat/mouse model systems.

Download the datasheet here.

Wide Range Insulin Kits

Product code: EWRRISY (rat)

Product code: EWRMISY (mouse)

For the quantitative determination of insulin in rat or mouse serum, plasma and fluid over a wide range from 1 ng/ml to 50 ng/ml. These kits are excellent for drug screening experiments or initial screening experiments where insulin levels are not known.

Download the datasheet here – Rat & Mouse

R-Phycoerythrin (R-PE) - (phycobiliprotein of red algae)

2011-10-17T12:07:00.003+01:00

Phycoerythrin (R-PE) is a constituent part of the photosynthesis apparatus of red algae. It consists of a protein and 34 phycoerythrobilin fluorochromes. This fluorochrome/protein ratio is the main reason for the bright intensity of R-PE. However, the low degree of photostability limits its range of application. Its high molecular weight and tendency to agglomerate must be taken into consideration during the use of R-PE conjugates. Non-specific binding of the fluorochrome to cells is occasionally observed. R-PE-conjugated antibodies should not be stored at -20°C, as freezing damages the fluorochrome.

Flow Cytometry

R-PE can be measured on all standard commercial flow cytometers and sorters. Its high light intensity makes it the fluorochrome of choice in the detection of antigens expressed in low concentrations. The R-PE fluorochrome is also often used in multicolour analysis. However, the spectral characteristics of R-PE require compensation with FITC and fluorochromes in the long-wave emission range. For intracellular stainings the size of the fluorochrome should be weighed against its bright intensity. Under certain circumstances it may be advantageous to use Alexa Fluor® conjugates, or FITC conjugates for intracellular applications.

To view Caltag Laboratories range of R-PE fluorochromes click here.

To view the full range of Caltag Laboratories fluorochromes and their applications click here.

Autophagy Research

2011-10-14T14:15:00.006+01:00

Autophagy was first discovered in yeast as a starvation response, in which cells digest portions of their cytoplasm to generate nutrients. In mammalian cells, autophagy has been shown to have additional functions and has been implicated in neuronal degradation, infectious disease, heart disease and cancer. MBL provides antibodies at a concentration of 1mg/ml and extensively validated for applications such as immunocytochemistry (ICC), immunohistochemistry (IHC), western blotting (WB), immunoprecipitation (IPP) and flow cytometry (FCM).

The most studied autophagy target is Atg8 which is present throughout the entire autophagy process. There are three mammalian homologues of yeast Atg8: LC3 (MICROTUBULE-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN 1, LIGHT CHAIN 3, ALPHA), GABARAP (GABAA receptor associate protein) and Gate-16 (Golgi –associated ATPase enhancer). Among these LC3 is the best characterized and is most commonly used as a autophagosome marker.

Yeast Atg14 has also long been known to be essential for autophagy, but its mammalian homologue Atg14L only recently has been identified. Together with Beclin1, Atg14L can bind to the kinases hVps34 and p150 to form a kinase complex. Three distinct Beclin1 complexes exist in the cell. The Atg14 complex (Beclin1, hVps34, hVps15, Atg14) promotes the autophagosome formation. The UVRAG complex (Beclin1, hVps34, hVps15, UVRAG) promotes autophagosome and endosome maturation. When Rubicon binds to a subpopulation of UVRAG proteins, the third complex (Beclin1, hVps34, hVps15, UVRAG, Rubicon) negatively regulates the process of autophagosome maturation and endosytosis.

Autophagy can be induced by serum deprivation. When such serum-starved cells are stained with an LC3 antibody and analyzed by flow cytometry, a decrease in fluorescence can be observed due to the degradation of LC3-II inside the autophagosomes.

Featured Product for flow Cytometry: Human LC3 Polyclonal Antibody (Product Code: PM036)

View the full product range here.

USB HotStart-IT® - For Increased Specificity and Consistent Results

2011-10-14T09:38:00.009+01:00

HotStart-IT® provides researchers with a complete line of robust, sensitive and specific reagents for hot start PCR, qPCR, and qRT-PCR. Rely on HotStart-IT® to provide premium quality and consistency for your most critical and routine PCR applications.

Benefits

High Specificity – avoids non-specific products and primer-dimer formation
Convenient – room temperature reaction set-up
Robust – withstands freeze-thaw cycles and storage for one month at room temperature

How It Works

HotStart-IT® Taq DNA Polymerase uses a novel hot start method called primer sequestration. In general, hot start PCR methods reduce or eliminate non-specific primer-extension

products formed at lower temperatures during assembly of PCR reactions. At these less stringent annealing temperatures, primers can bind non-specifically, which often leads to unwanted amplification products and primer-dimers.

USB HotStart-IT® uses a recombinant protein which binds and sequesters primers at lower temperatures making them unavailable for use by Taq DNA Polymerase. This primer-sequestration technique effectively blocks DNA synthesis from mispriming events at lower temperatures. Following the initial denaturing step during PCR, the protein is inactivated and the primers are free to participate in the amplification reaction. This novel hot start method enhances PCR reactions by increasing both specificity and yield.

Products Available

Long and Accurate PCR - High Fidelity

Product Code: USB-71155 - HotStart-IT® FideliTaq™ DNA Polymerase

Product Code: USB-71156 - HotStart-IT® FideliTaq™ PCR Master Mix (2X)

Hot-Start PCR - Novel Primer Binding

Product Code: USB-71195 - HotStart-IT® Taq DNA Polymerase

Product Code: USB-71196 - HotStart-IT® Taq PCR Master Mix (2X)

Product Code: USB-71194 - HotStart-IT® Binding Protein

qPCR - Master Mixes

Product Code: USB-75762 - HotStart-IT® SYBR® Green qPCR Master Mix (2X)

Product Code: USB-75766 - HotStart-IT® Probe qPCR Master Mix (2X)

Product Code: USB-75760 - HotStart-IT® SYBR® Green qPCR Master Mix with UDG (2X)

Product Code: USB-75764 - HotStart-IT® Probe qPCR Master Mix with UDG (2X)

qRT-PCR - Kits

Product Code: USB-75770 - HotStart-IT® SYBR® Green One-Step qRT-PCR Master Mix Kit

Product Code: USB-75772 - HotStart-IT® Probe One-Step qRT-PCR Master Mix Kit

Product Code: USB-75780 - First-Strand cDNA Synthesis Kit for Real-Time PCR

Leuko64: Routine diagnosis of inflammation and bacterial sepsis

2011-10-11T21:31:00.015+01:00

Monitoring infection by the detection of CD64 on neutrophils - For use on multi-parameter flow cytometers.

Neutrophil CD64 expression is rapidly increased both in vitro and in vivo within hours by mediators of inflammation, such as interferon-gamma and G-CSF. The same change is observed in response to documented infection or tissue injury, indicating the measurement of neutrophil CD64 expression correlates with the presence of infection or sepsis in humans.

The Leuko64 assay is intended for use in routine diagnosis of inflammation and bacterial sepsis by the measurement of leukocyte and specifically neutrophil CD64 levels in blood.

Special Features of the Leuko64 assay:

1) CD64 is an early onset marker for inflammatory responses to infection or tissue injury,

2) Clear Distinction between inflammation and conditions like leukemia, pregnancy or steroid therapy.

Clinical Applications:

1) Screening for infection severity in outpatients and hospitalised patients

2) Therapeutic monitor of antibiotic response in infection

3) Monitoring post-operative and post-chemotherapy patients, HIV+ patients and others at risk of infection/sepsis.

Leuko64 (75 test) Product Code: LK64-75 Reduced price sample kits available, email office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk to receive your kit. Usual list price £392, limited time offer price £313.

Leuko64 (250 test) Product Code: LK64-250 £1035.

The Leuko64 Assay kit is CE marked as an IVD; FDA clearance and patents are pending.

Key Benefits:

1) Automated software, co-developed with Verity Software House, for flow cytometric and Cell-Dyn list mode data analysis. The QuantiCALC for Leuko64 software uses iterative cluster finding algorithms and is included in the assay kit.

2) Requires only 50 µl of blood and under one hour of hands-on time.

3) Superior diagnostic evaluation of infection - sensitivity 90.5%, specificity 96.3%, positive predictive value 95.0%, negative predictive value 92.9%

4) Standardized assay with internal calibrator and controls.

5) Automated user-friendly software allows for excellent reproducibility (CV < 5%).

Keep Us In Mind.....

2011-10-11T20:54:00.015+01:00

...and save 10% on your orders.

Just quote our promotional code ‘Mind10’ on your next order to qualify.

This discount code is valid on all orders placed by the 31st December 2011, but it can’t be used in conjunction with any other offers.

We’re also offering extra discounts on large orders and there’s free shipping on orders over £1,000. Any questions? Just call our friendly team on 01280 827460 or email office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk to discuss your needs.

For details of exclusive offers/news/product information follow us on twitter @caltagmedsystem. Our Twitter account will let you know what is hot in the Life Science industry. Stay connected to the latest information about newly released products, new suppliers, exhibitions, and exciting promotions in real-time.

Abnova – Polyethylene Glycol Matched Antibody Pair

2011-10-10T11:39:00.004+01:00

This matched antibody pair set binds to the repeating subunits of the polyethylene glycol polymer and can be employed to detect and quantify PEGylated compounds.

Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) is a long chain polymer that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for human intravenous, oral and dermal applications. Covalent attachment of PEG (PEGylation) to proteins can reduce their immunogenicity, minimize proteolytic cleavage and increase their serum half-life. PEG has also been attached to small molecules and liposomes for more selective delivery. PEG-modification of superparamagnetic iron oxide and quantum dots can improve their biocompatibility and reduce non-specific uptake.

Characteristics of PEG

Water soluble, nontoxic, biocompatible
Covalently conjugated to proteins, small molecules, and particles
Decreased immunogenicity
Minimized proteolytic cleavage
Increased bioavailability

PEG Matched Antibody Pair

Capture antibody: mouse monoclonal anti-PEG, IgM
Detection antibody: mouse monoclonal anti-PEG, IgG1

Applications

Immunoblot
Immunoprecipitation
Sandwich ELISA
Flow Cytometry

Product Code: AP0001

BAFF – A Key Factor in Autoimmune Diseases

2011-10-07T14:22:00.006+01:00

BAFF (B-cell activating factor; BLyS; B lymphocyte stimulator; TNFSF13B; TALL-1; CD257), belonging to the TNF family, is a master regulator of peripheral B cell survival, and together with IL-6, promotes Ig class-switching and plasma cell differentiation. BAFF co-stimulates activated T cells. Increased levels of soluble BAFF have been detected in the serum of patients with various autoimmune

For a quantitative and specific measurement of BAFF levels diseases, such as Sjogren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Furthermore, BAFF is found in inflammatory sites in which there is lymphoid neogenesis. BAFF levels are elevated in patients with multiple myeloma and B cell chronic lymphoid leukaemia (B-CCL).

The first “highly sensitive” mAb/mAb-based human BAFF immunoassay
Detects BAFF levels in in patients with healthy and pathological conditions
Secured re-supply – available from stock
Inter- and intra- batch reproducibility
Small original sample amounts – only 5ul needed
Works on serum, plasma and cell culture supernatant

BAFF ELISA Kit (Human) – Hypersensitive

Product Code: AG-45B-0001-KI01 (1 x 96 well plate)

Download the datasheet here.

Upcoming Exhibitions...

2011-10-06T14:02:00.007+01:00

Come and meet us at one of the following exhibition and vendor days that we are attending this year. we are exhibiting at a number of exhibitions in the remaining months on 2011, covering a vast range of topics and in many areas of the UK. Why not pop along to one and pay us a visit.

On 26^th October 2011 we will be in Manchester at the Paterson Institute for Cancer Research.

Research spans the whole spectrum of cancer research, from programmes investigating molecular and cellular basis of cancer, to those focussed on translational research and development of therapeutics. We will be located in the coffee room so don’t be shy, come and see what treats we have.

For more information on this vendor day email: enquiries@picr.man.ac.uk

On 6^th-8^th November 2011 we will be in Liverpool exhibiting at the National Cancer Research Institute Cancer Conference.

This has become an annual event in the UK covering all aspects of cancer research. It aims to encourage the sharing of knowledge, ideas and best practice, and to promote cross-disciplinary collaboration.

For more information on this conference visit the website.

On 8^th November 2011 we will be at Hixton Hall in Cambridge, exhibiting at the ELRIG Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine conference.

This conference will highlight state of the art research and technology enabling the provision of stem cells, their differentiation into desired cell types as well as applications as potential therapeutic agents.

For more information on this conference visit the website or click here.

On 10^th November 2011 we will be at UCL in London exhibiting at the Diabetes and Obesity Conference, hosted by the Association for the Study of Obesity (ASO).

The Association for the Study of Obesity (ASO) is the UK’s foremost charitable organisation dedicated to the understanding and treatment of obesity.

For more information on this event click here.

On 23rd November 2011 we will be in Cambridge visiting the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research (CIMR).

CIMR is a modern research facility in Cambridge UK, where clinical and basic science converge in the study of the molecular mechanisms of disease.

For more information on this event email: cimr-reception@lists.cam.ac.uk

On 15th December 2011 we will be in London at the Imperial College London Symposium: “Vascular Endothelium: Role in disease pathogenesis and as a therapeutic target”.

The event is co-organised by the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology and the Cardiovascular Medicine Unit of Imperial College. It will bring together scientists and clinicians from basic and translational research, investigating the vascular endothelium in health, inflammation, cardiovascular disease and cancer.

For more information on this event click here.

Promoter-Binding TF Profiling Assay I

2011-09-30T16:13:00.014+01:00

To characterise transcription factors (TFs) that bind to a specific promoter or that regulate the expression of a specific gene via its upstream promoter, two common approaches may be applied.

Gel shift assay with DNA binding sites of TFs that are silico-identified within the promoter.
Removal or knockout the binding site(s) of a specific TF in order to measure whether the expression of a promoter-linked reporter is up or down regulated. Often, a series of reporter constructs with the promoter deletions or mutations need to be made as many binding sites of one or even a few TFs may be present within a promoter.

Signosis has developed a fast method to facilitate the characterisation of promoters through a revised TF activation array. This assay will help to test whether any of the selected 48 TFs bind to the promoter or not.

Benefits

The Signosis proprietary Promoter-Binding TF Profiling Array offers:

Multiplex Assay - A single assay permits the characterisation of the binding of 48 TFs to a specific promoter
Simple Procedures - Probe incubation, spin column separation, plate hybridisation, and HRP detection

Principle of the technology

In this assay, a PCR fragment containing the promoter of your interest is mixed with a set of 48 biotin-labelled oligos corresponding to 48 TFs along with an assayed sample. If unlabelled promoter DNA fragment contains a TF binding sequence, it will compete with the biotin-labelled oligo to bind to the TF in the sample, leading to a loss or reduction in biotin labelled TF/DNA complex formation. This will in turn result in either an absence or a significant reduction in signal. By comparing samples in the presence and absence of the competitor promoter DNA fragment, promoter-bound TFs can be identified.

Product Code: FA-2001

For further information about this product, please follow this link.

Uscn - specialist ELISA kit manufacturer

2011-09-29T16:24:00.009+01:00

Uscn manufacture a vast portfolio of ELISA kits for targets across many different species - including human, mouse, rat, rabbit, pig, cow, guinea pig and lots more! Many of their human ELISA's are CE marked for clinical use.

Topics in which the ELISA kits fall into are extensive:

Cytokines
Haematology
Innate Immunity
Apoptosis
Infectious Diseases
Endocrine
Metabolism

For more information regarding any of these kits or if you are looking for a specific ELISA please contact us on office@caltagmedsystems.co.uk for more information.

Bulk quantity discounts are available on these products so if you are interested in purchasing any of these kits in a larger quantity please email sarah@caltagmedsystems.co.uk to arrange a quotation.