Antigen Products - Research Grade Antigens & Bacterial Toxins

MyBioSource is the world leader in providing high quality and diverse range of antigens for research applications.

An antigen is typically defined as a substance that triggers an immunogenic response. The immune system sees the antigen as a foreign substance; that is, something that is non-self. The production of antibodies by B-cells, specialized cells of the immune system, is the most well-known immunogenic response triggered by antigens.

An antigen may be a recombinant or native protein, partial protein, synthetic or natural peptide, chemical, toxin, viral or bacterial component, standard or reagent for ELISA assays, as well as an environmental agent.

For example, made to order recombinant protein antigens may start off from the cloning stage. Optional services, upon request, for made to order protein antigens includes low endotoxin, aseptic manufacture, and tag removal.

Antigens are widely used research tools with a myriad of applications. Known applications are listed on the product data sheet. Applications may also be empirically established by the researcher. Employing antigens for antibody generation are key applications. Antigens are referred to as immunogenic antigens or simply immunogens when they are specifically used to generate an immune response that is expected to result in antibody production. Although the term immunogen is often used interchangeably with the term antigen, strictly speaking, only an immunogen is immunogenic and can evoke an immune response.

Commercial production of antibodies is routine, and a plethora of high quality antibodies are available from MyBioSource. Researchers also use immunogenic antigens to produce their own antibodies.

Many factors affect the probability of coaxing an immune system to generate antibodies specifically targeted against an immunogenic antigen. First of all, antigens must be immunogenic. Antigens are frequently conjugated to carrier proteins to amplify their immunogenicity in vivo. For example, a standard 15-20 amino acid peptide is too small to elicit an immune response, and is conjugated to a larger carrier such as KLH (Keyhole Limpet Hemocyanin) protein prior to immunization. KLH is highly immunogenic and capable of eliciting a strong immune response. Immuonogenic peptide-carrier complexes stimulate immune responses, hopefully resulting in the desired outcome of producting specific antibodies directed against the amino acid peptide sequence.

Haptens are also conjugated to carrier proteins to elicit immune responses. A hapten, often referred as an incomplete or partial antigen, is a molecule or non-protein substance that in of itself is not immunogenic. However, hapten-carrier, like peptide-carrier, complexes, can stimulate immune responses and antibody production.

Pricing and availability

MyBioSource rates high in customer satisfaction for product quality and cost, as well as customer service. Prices are competitive and packing sizes both economical and flexible, designed with lab budgets in mind.

Our products may be ordered directly through the MyBioSource.com website or by fax at 1.858.633.0166 or through direct email to sales@mybiosource.com. Our sales force is well trained and ready to assist researchers with their reagent requirements. Please click here to submit your antigen, protein, or antibody requests.