Recombinant antibodies offer several key advantages compared to traditional antibodies. These include superior lot-to-lot consistency, continuous supply, and animal-free manufacturing. As such, recombinant antibodies are seeing increased use for scientific research, especially as a means of addressing the ongoing reproducibility crisis.
Traditional polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies are the product of normal B cell development and genetic recombination. They are generated by immunizing an animal with an antigen to elicit an immune response. While polyclonal antibodies are secreted by many different B cell clones and recognize multiple antigenic epitopes, monoclonals originate from a single B cell clone and are specific for just one epitope.
Recombinant antibodies are monoclonal, but their production involves in vitro genetic manipulation. After cloning the antibody genes into an expression vector, this is then transfected into an appropriate host cell line for antibody expression. Mammalian cell lines are most commonly used for recombinant antibody production, although cell lines of bacterial, yeast, or insect origin are also suitable.
Because recombinant antibody production involves sequencing the antibody light and heavy chains, it is a highly controlled and reliable process. In contrast, hybridoma-based systems for producing monoclonal antibodies are subject to genetic drift and instability, increasing the potential for lot-to-lot variability or loss of antibody expression. Recombinant antibodies are highly consistent from lot to lot, thereby ensuring reproducible experimental results.
In vitro methods for producing antibodies are amenable to large-scale production, meaning antibody availability is unlikely to become a limiting factor. Moreover, since the recombinant antibody sequence is known, continuity of supply is assured; in situations where an antibody will be used to support large, long-term studies, this can be an especially critical factor.
Unlike traditional methods for antibody production, recombinant approaches avoid the need to use animals. Where polyclonal antibodies are purified directly from the serum of the immunized host, and monoclonals are purified from either hybridoma-derived tissue culture supernatant or ascites, recombinant antibodies are instead purified from the tissue culture supernatants of transfected host cell lines. Regardless of whether an antibody is polyclonal, monoclonal or recombinant, it must always be properly validated in the intended application prior to experimental use. At CST, we adhere to the Hallmarks of Antibody Validation™, six complementary strategies for determining the specificity, sensitivity, and functionality of an antibody in any given assay. By carefully tailoring these strategies to each antibody product, we guarantee that CST antibodies will work as expected, to help you achieve results you can trust.
| Cat. # | Size | Qty. | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 74355SF | 100 µg |
|
| REACTIVITY | H Mk |
| SENSITIVITY | Endogenous |
| MW (kDa) | 25-42 |
| Source/Isotype | Rabbit IgG |
Product Information
Human, Monkey
Monoclonal antibody is produced by immunizing animals with recombinant protein corresponding to a fragment of human cathepsin L protein spanning residues Ala114 to Thr288.
Cathepsin L belongs to the C1 family of peptidases, a large and diverse family of cysteine (thiol) proteases that play fundamental roles in protein processing and degradation. The catalytic activity of C1 peptidases maps to a nucleophilic cysteine thiol, usually found within a catalytic dyad or triad (1). Cathepsin L, initially synthesized as procathepsin L before undergoing proteolytic cleavage to its active form, is a ubiquitously expressed thiol protease, expressed primarily in lysosomes but which is also secreted by some cell types. Its diverse functions include general protein catabolism and autophagy (2), antigen processing (3), promoting angiogenesis (4), and extracellular matrix degradation (5,6). An isoform of cathepsin L has also been reported in the nucleus, where it was shown to be involved in the regulation of transcription factor activity (7). Targeted deletion of the Ctsl gene in mice embryos was non-lethal, but resulted in periodic hair loss and skin defects, including epidermal hyperplasia, acanthosis, and hyperkeratosis (8). More recently, research studies have reported that cathepsin L is involved in viral protein processing during viral replication, and that cathepsin L inhibitors may have utility in combating infection by SARS-CoV-2 and related coronaviruses (9).
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