I joined Marc Pelletier, Andre Nantel, and George Farr on episode 71 of Futures in Biotech for a conversation about the 1000 genome project, the billion dollar human proteome, how antibodies block viral infection, and capturing anti-matter. [audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/twit.cachefly.net/fib0071.mp3 | titles=FiB 71] Download audio FiB #71 (42 MB .mp3, 87 minutes) Download video (211 MB .mp4)
Antibodies are an important component of the host defense against viral infection. These molecules, produced 7-14 days after infection, neutralize viral infectivity, thereby limiting the spread of infection. Antibodies are thought to neutralize viral infectivity in several ways: by forming noninfectious aggregates that cannot enter cells, or by blocking virion attachment to cells or uncoating …
Antibodies neutralize viral infectivity inside cells Read More »
Many virological techniques are based on the specificity of the antibody-antigen reaction. Examples in our virology toolbox include western blot analysis and ELISA. While very useful, these methods cannot be used to visualize viral proteins in infected cells or tissues. To do that we must turn to immunostaining. In direct immunostaining (illustrated), an antibody that …
Detecting viral proteins in infected cells or tissues by immunostaining Read More »
A more rapid method than Western blot analysis to detect a specific protein in a cell, tissue, organ, or body fluid is enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, or ELISA. This method, which does not require fractionation of the sample by gel electrophoresisis, is based on the property of proteins to readily bind to a plastic surface. To …
In healthy individuals, the first encounter with a virus leads to a primary antibody response. When an infection occurs with the same or a similar virus, a rapid antibody response occurs that is called the secondary antibody response. Antibodies are critical for preventing many viral infections, including influenza. But reinfection may occur if we encounter the same …
With the looming prospect of mass immunization against influenza, it’s important to understand how vaccines work. To do this we must have a good understanding of adaptive immune defenses. Today we’ll begin a discussion of the humoral arm of the adaptive immune response – antibodies. Antibodies are large proteins produced by vertebrates that play important …
