Immunoscreening is a method of

biotechnology Biotechnology is a multidisciplinary field that involves the integration of natural sciences and Engineering Science, engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms and parts thereof for products and services. Specialists ...

used to detect a

polypeptide Peptides are short chains of amino acids linked by peptide bonds. A polypeptide is a longer, continuous, unbranched peptide chain. Polypeptides that have a molecular mass of 10,000 Da or more are called proteins. Chains of fewer than twenty ...

produced from a cloned

gene In biology, the word gene has two meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity. The molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protei ...

. The term encompasses several different techniques designed for protein identification, such as Western blotting, using

recombinant DNA Recombinant DNA (rDNA) molecules are DNA molecules formed by laboratory methods of genetic recombination (such as molecular cloning) that bring together genetic material from multiple sources, creating sequences that would not otherwise be fo ...

, and analyzing antibody-peptide interactions. Clones are screened for the presence of the gene product: the resulting protein. This strategy requires first that a gene library is implemented in an expression vector, and that antiserum to the protein is available. Radioactivity or an enzyme is coupled generally with the secondary antibody. The radioactivity/enzyme linked secondary antibody can be purchased commercially and can detect different antigens. In commercial diagnostics labs, labelled primary antibodies are also used. The antigen-antibody interaction is used in the immunoscreening of several diseases.Mukerjee S, McKnight ME, Glassy MC. Immunoscreening protocols for the identification of clinically useful antibodies and antigens. Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 1998 Mar;7(3):373-89. doi: 10.1517/13543784.7.3.373. PMID 15991979.

References

Biotechnology {{Biotech-stub

See also

References