Our comprehensive portfolio of antibodies is designed to empower scientists worldwide in their quest to unravel the fundamental complexities of biology and disease and drive scientific breakthroughs. We offer a vast selection of highly cited antibodies, including monoclonal antibodies and polyclonal antibodies, along with an unmatched range of recombinant monoclonal antibodies, as well more specialized offerings, including our chimeras and multiclonal antibodies, ensuring researchers have access to the tools they need for success. In addition, our extensive collection of conjugated secondary antibodies provides versatile options for a variety of applications, supporting advancements across diverse fields of study.
Antibodies serve essential functions in both physiological immune responses and in research, where each isotype plays a distinct role in immunity and scientific discovery.
In biological research, primary antibodies are essential tools for detecting and quantifying specific antigens across a wide variety of samples. Secondary antibodies allow for the detection of primary antibodies that specifically bind to the target protein.
At Abcam, we provide an extensive range of antibody solutions to meet your research needs. Our polyclonal antibodies offer broader epitope coverage, while our monoclonal antibodies deliver excellent specificity and sensitivity. Our recombinant monoclonal antibodies build upon our monoclonal antibodies by offering a constant supply with no batch-to-batch variability, ensuring confidence in your results. We also offer multiclonal antibodies, which combine the broad epitope coverage of our polyclonal antibodies with the sensitivity, specificity, and consistency of our recombinant monoclonal antibodies, as well as chimeras, which provide unparalleled flexibility and an additional level of experimental control.
Our extensive catalog includes both primary and secondary antibodies, available in conjugated forms with various tags, dyes, fluorophores, or other conjugates, as well as unconjugated and carrier-free options. Our recombinant monoclonal antibodies undergo rigorous testing in numerous disease tissue types as well as with overexpression and knock-out cell lines to ensure specificity. They are validated across a wide range of applications, including western blot, flow cytometry, ELISA, immunohistochemistry, immunocytochemistry, and more, serving over 70 different applications. Additionally, we offer custom antibody solutions and conjugation kits so you can always find the perfect antibody solution for your research.
primary-antibodies
Primary Antibodies
Our extensive primary antibody catalog features widely referenced monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies, along with an exceptional selection of recombinant monoclonal antibodies. Additionally, we provide a wide selection of fluorescently conjugated antibodies and carrier-free, conjugation-ready antibodies, all designed to deliver consistent results, unmatched specificity, and flexibility to accelerate research with ease. It is crucial to select the right primary antibodies and labels to avoid challenges like cross-talk and false positives. Our recombinant monoclonal antibodies eliminate these uncertainties, providing excellent sensitivity and specificity to ensure consistent, trustworthy results.
Browse Products
secondary
Secondary Antibodies
Secondary antibodies are used to detect a primary antibody and allow for the amplification of a signal. Secondary antibodies are produced by immunizing an animal, such as a goat, with antibodies from a different species. For example, immunizing a goat with rabbit IgG will produce goat anti-rabbit IgG secondary antibodies. It is important to choose a secondary antibody that corresponds to the species in which the primary antibody was generated, as well as its isotype. For example, a goat anti-rabbit IgG secondary antibody can detect rabbit IgG primary antibodies. Secondary antibodies can be conjugated to fluorophores, such as Alexa Fluor dyes, enzymes like HRP and alkaline phosphatase, or proteins like biotin to allow detection or visualization. We offer a wide range of secondary antibodies, with over 35 conjugates to choose from, as well carrier-free secondary antibodies suitable for your own conjugation needs and Lightning-Link® kits to allow for quick conjugation with minimal antibody loss.
Browse Products
Features
Key features of antibodies used for research
- Clonality: Antibodies can be polyclonal, derived from multiple B cells, or monoclonal, originating from a single B cell clone. Each offers distinct advantages for specificity and application needs.
- Recombinant production: Recombinant antibodies are engineered in vitro using genes extracted from hybridomas, ensuring long-term supply, minimal batch-to-batch variability, and a constant supply.
- Specificity: This refers to the antibody’s ability to bind specifically to the target of interest, with minimal to no non-specific binding with other antigens. The specificity of our antibodies recombinant monoclonal antibodies is validated using knock-out and overexpression cell lines. Improving the specificity of antibodies ensures precise targeting of your target of interest, improving detection at low expression levels and minimizing cross-reactivity.
- Validation: Our antibodies undergo rigorous validation across several applications (eg, western blot, IHC, and ICC, among others) and in samples from various species and disease types to ensure accuracy and reliability in experimental setups.
- Scalability: Recombinant monoclonal antibodies can be produced at any scale, making them ideal for long-term studies and for obtaining reproducible results across multiple batches.
- Host species: Antibodies are raised in specific host species, such as in rabbits or mice, different from the sample species, to minimize cross-reactivity with the sample species.
- Versatility: Our antibodies are available in various formats and conjugations (eg, fluorescent dyes and tags); thus, our antibodies are suitable for a range of experimental applications.
Applications
Research-grade antibodies are essential detection tools for scientists. For example, a researcher investigating cellular dysfunction can use antibodies to target and identify specific proteins present within a diseased cell at a particular stage of its life cycle. Antibodies are commonly employed in the following techniques:
- Western blotting: Antibodies are used in western blotting to specifically bind and detect target proteins separated by gel electrophoresis, enabling their identification and quantification. Frequently, tagged secondary antibodies are also used to amplify the signal and allow visualization of the signal.
- Immunohistochemistry: In immunohistochemistry, antibodies are applied to tissue sections to visualize the localization and distribution of specific proteins within the tissue using enzymatic detection or fluorescent markers. It is important to use antibodies that recognize your target in the species your tissue was obtained from and to use secondary antibodies that do not cross-react with epitopes in the tissue.
- ELISA: Antibodies in ELISA are used to capture and detect the presence of specific antigens or antibodies in a sample, often for diagnostic or quantitative purposes. When using a pair of antibodies (capture and detection), you should ensure that the antibodies recognize different epitopes in your target protein and show specificity for the target.
- Flow cytometry: Antibodies in flow cytometry are frequently tagged with fluorescent markers and used to analyze and quantify specific proteins or cell surface markers in a cell population.
- Immunoprecipitation: Antibodies are employed in immunoprecipitation to selectively bind and isolate a specific protein or protein complex from a mixture, facilitating its analysis.
- Multiplex immunohistochemistry (mIHC): Several antibodies are used in succession to allow simultaneous detection of multiple antigens in a single tissue sample, enabling comprehensive biomarker profiling.
- IHC on paraffin-embedded tissue (IHC-P): Antibodies bind to specific antigens in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections to allow visualization of protein expression patterns for diagnostic or research purposes.
- Immunocytochemistry/Immunofluorescence (ICC/IF): Antibodies label specific proteins within cells, allowing for the study of their localization and visualization under a fluorescence microscope.
What are antibodies made of?
Antibodies are made of four polypeptide chains - two heavy chains and two light chains - arranged in a Y-shape, with variable regions for antigen binding and constant regions for immune system interaction.
What are the main types of antibodies?
Physiologically, the main types of antibodies are IgG, IgM, IgA, IgE, and IgD, each with distinct structures and functions during the immune response.
How are antibodies used in research?
Antibodies are used in research to detect, quantify, and analyze specific proteins or antigens within biological samples, enabling scientists to study cell function, disease mechanisms, protein interactions, and molecular pathways. They are employed in techniques like western blotting, immunohistochemistry, ELISA, flow cytometry, and immunoprecipitation to support a wide range of biological investigations.
What is the structure of an antibody?
The antibody structure consists of four polypeptide chains - two identical heavy chains and two identical light chains - arranged in a Y-shape. The two top regions of the Y-shaped protein contain the variable or fragment antigen-binding (F(ab)) regions, which bind to specific antigens. The base of the Y-shaped protein forms the fragment crystallizable (Fc) region, which is responsible for interacting with other components of the immune system. A flexible hinge region connects the two arms of the Y, allowing for movement and enhancing antigen binding.