Atlas Antibodies Blog

A liquid biopsy is the analysis of tumors using molecular biomarkers circulating in biological fluids such as blood. This non-invasive sampling approach can aid, not only in predicting the progression and growth dynamics of a cancer but also provide guidance for therapy monitoring. This blog tries to cover various features and issues associated with liquid biopsy-based applications as exemplified by tumor markers.

Microglia are brain-resident macrophages forming the first active immune barrier in the central nervous system. Microglia are endowed with a spectacular plasticity, allowing them to acquire multiple phenotypes and thereby fulfill their numerous functions in health and disease. In this blog post we share an overview of the existing knowledge regarding the neuro-modulatory function of microglia. 

Available anti-lung cancer therapy treatments, like most other onco-therapies, also negatively affects the viability of healthy untransformed cells, causing unwanted side effects. The rapidly evolving and novel field of targeted anti-tumor therapies has become tailored to be more specific and more efficient in eradicating tumor cells and also radically reduce the damage to the normal parental tissue. Keep reading and learn more about the rapidly evolving field of targeted drug therapy in lung cancer.

The Western blot application combines the resolving power of polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the specificity of antibodies, and the sensitivity of enzyme assays. Although every step of a Western blot procedure must be carefully considered, fundamental to its success is the ability of the primary antibody to detect the protein of interest. But how to validate an antibody for Western blot?

Despite its overall simplicity, the Western Blot application is a powerful procedure for the immunodetection of proteins and an essential tool within biological research. Nevertheless, proteins of the same length or similar size, such as isoform of the same protein, are difficult to separate. With some adjustments you can however achieve great results. Here we share some tips.

This month we celebrate the first anniversary of our blog. It has been an incredible journey. If you have missed our blog posts, read on. We have interviewed scientists, discussed the importance of antibodies validation, the human protein atlas project and we gave you advice on how to succeed with your immunohistochemistry.

Today we meet with Dr. Peter Thul, group leader at the Human Protein Atlas (HPA) project, Stockholm, Sweden. Peter is one of the scientists behind the Cell Atlas: a database that provides high-resolution insights into the expression and spatio-temporal distribution of proteins within human cells. We asked Peter 10 questions about the past, the present, and the future of the Cell Atlas.

The Annual Society for Neuroscience (SfN) meeting features the latest discoveries in brain research, from the basic mechanisms, to translational and clinical studies. Here are some highlights from the conference.

Attend our AAAS/Science-hosted webinar “The Brain Atlas: A road map through the complex protein signature of the brain” and learn more about the Brain Atlas, part of the Human Protein Atlas (HPA), from the scientists behind the project. Register today!

Today we meet with Dr. Jan Mulder, group leader of the Human Protein Atlas (HPA) brain profiling group at Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, and the director of the Brain Atlas, a brand-new addition to the (HPA) project. His research interest is to identify proteins involved in brain development, normal brain physiology and pathophysiology of brain disorders by using an antibody-based approach combined with multiplex fluorescence immunohistochemistry.

We asked Jan 10 questions about the past, the present, and the future of the Brain Atlas.

The Brain Atlas is a tool that brings the human brain mapping on a new level. It provides an overview of all the proteins expressed in the brains of three mammalian species: human, mouse and pig. It also compares the proteins in the brain to the proteins in other tissue types of the human body. Excited? Read more.

Applied biological or biomedical research aims to reach a thorough understanding of the physiology of organisms and to further development of disease therapeutics. Some scientific discoveries have narrow applicability or scope and are sometimes serendipitous or even entirely unexpected. Other have wider applicability and transferability having proved enormously useful over a wide range of domains. Among the latter are research antibodies. Read more to discover how they help progressing science.

Washing- and staining solutions, blocking agents, detection and mounting solutions. Successful immunohistochemical staining requires reliable, high-quality reagents to fixate, to wash and permeabilize the tissue. But what is the rationale behind the fact that certain buffers or storage conditions are better to use than other, or is it all just empiric?

Today we meet with Dr. Cecilia Lindskog, group leader at Uppsala University in Sweden, and the site director of the Tissue Atlas part of the Human Protein Atlas (HPA). Her research is focused on protein science, understanding the biology and functions of human proteins expressed in different organs, and the underlying mechanisms leading to cancer and other diseases. We asked her 10 questions about the past, the present, and the future of the Tissue Atlas.

We have run the exact same experiment. I found X. You found Y. Why? Have you been in this conversation with a collaborator? Have you ever obtained amazing results which contradict previous theory? Before you read on, take a moment to answer that for yourself. What was your reaction? “It is all my fault. I must have done something wrong” or “Interesting, I never thought about that before…” 

The human body is the results of trillion of cells communicating with each other. Early biologists described cells as simple membranous sacs containing fluid and a few floating particles. Today we know that cells are infinitely more complex than that. Read here about the Cell Atlas, part of the Human Protein Atlas, for insights into the spatio-temporal distribution of proteins within human cells. 

As a rule, the complex biology and spatial organization of tissues and solid tumors poses a scientific and diagnostic challenge that is not sufficiently well addressed by standard immunohistochemistry (IHC) procedures. How come this is the case? The answer is that single IHC staining provides data on only one marker at a time. So, how do you stain multiple protein in the same cell or tissue?

In this blog, we would like to tell you about that time when researchers interested in a new therapeutic target for patients with type 2 diabetes, knocked at our door asking for help, and how we used the Tissue Atlas, part of the Human Protein Atlas project, to answer their questions. But let’s start from the beginning.

Today we meet with Dr. Kristian Moller, Principal Scientist at Altas Antibodies, to ask him 10 questions about past, present, and future of multiplex immunohistochemistry.

Can you make use of an antibody that targets a human protein in another model organism? Under the right conditions, the answer is yes!