Human Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells (hPBMCs) are essential for designing cellular models to be used in cell therapy and drug discovery research programs [1-7, 12]. Being able to access reliable and ethical sources of well-characterized hPBMCs is now becoming fundamental for running physiologically relevant cell-based assays. A good opportunity to discuss the expanding applications for hPBMCs in drug development, that Patricia Bresnahan, PhD (Global Marketing Director at HemaCare Corporation) has observed over the last years.
Analysis tool for direct and sandwich ELISA – convenient and reliable
Many ELISA kits – one analysis tool
Analyte quantification (in pg/ml or ng/ml) such as IL-6, TNFalpha and numerous other proteins is conveniently performed with immunoassays called ELISA kits. At tebu-bio, we not only provide more than 10 000 ELISA kits but we also support researchers through our techserv team who are on-hand to suggest the best kits and to answer any questions.
Being part of that team, I have noticed a number of often asked questions that can be resumed in one : What is the best method for data analysis? [Read more…]
Cell Signalling: Ras-Raf-MEK-ERK pathway research tools
The Ras-Raf-MEK-ERK Pathway is an important cell signalling route with many implications for cancer biology and therapeutic development. Dis-regulation of some of this pathway’s proteins expression and phosphorylation status are observed in about one-third of all human cancers. Access to specific tools to study this pathway is essential to a better understanding of its role in cancer for novel drug development. If you are working on this topic, you’ll be interested in taking a look at the range of reagents on offer for a wide variety of applications.
New in Live Cell Imaging: CopperGREEN and GlycoGREEN probes
One of our aims is to offer you, the researcher, a large and varied selection of biologically relevant, innovative Live Cell Imaging tools. In 2016, we started a collaboration with Goryo Chemical, when our specialists selected their unique fluorescent dyes for cellular analysis, assays and live cell imaging.
In one of my previous posts, I already invited you to take a (non-exhaustive) look at their diversified range of fluorescent dyes, which can be used in a variety of fields such as stem cell differentiation, cancer cell studies, Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) analysis… Today, I’d like to take you through two new fluorescent probes we’re pleased to make available for you.
Metabolite production made fast and easy – BMO Kits
Metabolite characterization can be a lengthy process making your in vitro drug testing time consuming and expensive. Whether you are working on phase I or phase II metabolic enzymatic reactions, take a look at these BMO kits which can help you speed up this characterisation process.
The Phase I BMO metabolism kits take you through 3 simple steps:
- Perform the primary screen and select the desired metabolite wells (XTHCK1001-01)
- Perform the optimization and identify the best production conditions
- Scale-up and isolate the metabolite
Cell Signalling: MAP Kinase Signalling with phospho ELISA test
The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway is activated by a number of extra and intracellular stimuli including cytokines, growth factors, and hormones as well as stressors such as oxidative and ER stress. This pathways plays a key role in the regulation of many cellular processes including proliferation, differentiation, the stress response, motility, growth, differentiation, survival, and death. Abnormal MAPK signaling may contribute to increased or uncontrolled cell proliferation and/or resistance to apoptosis. To study this complex pathway, several tools are available, from the pathway specific arrays for an initial screen, to phospho-specific ELISA tests for individual target validation. This post aims at helping you to easily identify tools to explore this pathway in your samples (from arrays to phospho-ELISAs). However, I could not start without showing you once more one of these eye-catching illustrations of cell signalling pathways. I’ll let you explore it to dig out the MAPK protein cascade among all of them (a kind of Where’s Wally for the researcher !).
MAP Kinase cell signaling pathway – but which ELISA test or array should you choose to study it?
3 novel PD-L1 post-translational modifications identified
In a recent paper, Horita H. et al. identified a set of novel Post-Translational Modifications (PTMs) of the protein Programmed Cell Death Ligand (PD-L1).
Profile of PD-L1 post-translational modifications and their roles in regulating PD-L1 protein levels. Source: Horita H. et al. (2017) – http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neo.2017.02.006 (Cytoskleton Inc).
For this, a novel series of PTM enrichment assays  enabling the highly specific profiling of 4 key PTM profiles (Tyrosine phosphorylation (pY), Acetylation (Ac), Unbiquitination (Ub) and SUMOylation 2/3), have been used on EGF-stimulated A431 cell line. They revealed that EGF induced pY, Ac, mono- and poly-Ub Of PD-L1 in these EGF treated epidermoid carcinoma cells. The authors also suggested that the balance between mono- / poly-Ub of PD-L1 might regulate PD-L1 stability, as already described with LDB-1 protein.
These novel PD-L1 PTMs and their related regulatory actions might be valuable information in the future for the design of drug strategies targeting PD-L1/PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibition. [Read more…]
Stauprimide inhibits c-myc transcription in cancer cells
Stauprimide is known to prime Embryonic Stem Cells (ESC) by targeting the c-Myc-activating transcription factor NME2. Its mechanism of action is linked to the inhibition of the nuclear localization of NME2 leading to the downregulation of the transcription of the c-myc oncogene.
In a recent study, Bouvard C. et al. evidenced that Stauprimide’s mechanism of action could also be used to pharmacologically targetc-myc transcription in cancers. [Read more…]
Fluorescence microscopy: how to improve your Live Cell Imaging
For more than 2 years now, the Silicon Rhodamine-like (SiR) technology has allowed the live cell imaging field with fluorescence microscopy to evolve significantly.
Fluorescent SiR-probes have appeared as the best alternative tools for studying Actin (SiR-actin), Microtubules (SiR-Tubulin), DNA (SiR-DNA) and now lysosome (SiR-Lysosome) for live cell imaging. Who better to show this? Well, here’s how other researchers have been using them to get optimal results. [Read more…]
Proteins with the High Purity (HiPâ„¢) label make the difference
The HiPâ„¢ (High Purity) distinction by BPS Bioscience starts, of course (as the name says), with a high purity level. But that’s not enough. Such pure proteins may aggregate, which is not compatible with binding assays. Thus, the HiPâ„¢ label also demands a low level of aggregation, or even none at all. [Read more…]