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Overview
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What are immunoassays and what are they useful for?

Immunoassays are analytical methods that utilize antigen-antibody chemistry and their interactions for the detection and quantitation of analytes, such as cytokines, chemokines, growth factors and other proteins. Radioimmunoassays (RIAs) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) are some of the most commonly used immunoassays. ELISAs have been the gold standard for immunoassay analyses due to their remarkable sensitivity, specificity and precision. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELISPOT) is another powerful immunoassay for analyzing specific antibody-secreting cells. More recently, capture bead–based immunoassays have provided a sensitive option for the measurement of a wide variety of analytes and offer the ability to multiplex at a larger scale compared to the other formats.

BD Biosciences offers multiple tools and assay platforms for cytokine and chemokine quantitation

  • BD® CBA Solutions for multiplexed detection and analysis
  • BD OptEIA™ Kits and Sets for routine ELISA research applications
  • BD® ELISPOT Assays for determining the frequency of cytokine production

Tools and Techniques for Cytokine Quantitation


Tool/Technology BD® Cytometric Bead Array (CBA) ELISA ELISPOT
Molecules detected Secreted or intracellular Secreted Secreted (in situ)
Multiparameter Yes No No
Single-cell / cell-subset information No No Frequencies, no subset information
Antigen-specific Yes Yes Yes
Post-assay viability Yes Yes No
Protein quantitation Yes Yes No
Instrumentation Flow cytometer Spectro-photometer ELISPOT reader

 

 

Bead-based Immunoassays
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ELISA Immunoassay
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ELISPOT Immunoassay
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For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.