SEPMAG is well known for helping IVD companies to improve, validate and scale up their biomagnetic separation processes. All this know-how on the physics behind the process also benefits researchers and industries in protein purification, cell sorting, and DNA/RNA capture.
Immuno is a prefix that means you are talking about immunity. Immunity is how the body is protected against pathogens. The immune system has a system for recognizing foreign objects, then a system for combating the presence of the foreign object. For example in humans, T-cells are a type of immune cell that recognizes antigens, structures or molecules that are foriegn. Another important immune molecule is the antibody. Antibodies are shaped like the letter Y, and the two arms of the top of the Y recognize antigens. The specific part of an antigen that is recognized is called the epitope. The antibody recognizes the epitope by its structure and sequence of amino acids. This antibody-antigen interaction serves to help the body recognize antigens. When the interaction is strong enough, it also serves as a way to neutralize antigens. Another important aspect of antibodies is that they can have highly specific interactions with an epitope, and this interaction is strong as well, also known as a high affinity interaction. These two traits, the specificity and affinity, make antibodies a great tool as well! Let’s talk more about using antibodies for a particular tool, immunoprecipitation.
Cell isolation is a technique that is done in research labs and clinical settings. Cell isolation can be done in research settings to isolate a single cell to do research on it. There is a technique called patch clamp electrophysiology which measures voltage across a cell membrane. There are several ways to do this technique, either by inserting the pipette right into the membrane, or by taking a piece of the membrane off into the pipette so that molecules are still flowing through the membrane and the pipette which is connected to a device that can measure current. Another reason to isolate cells is to use them to study the effects of a drug on cell health. One grows cells in a dish in an optimized media for growth and stability. Then a drug can be introduced into the dish and one can observe how the cell physiology changes. The molecules released from the cells can also be studied or the change in the processes or proteins in the cell can also be studied with further purification or extraction techniques.
Magnetic properties of nanoparticles are used for drug delivery, therapeutic treatment, contrast agents for MRI imaging, bioseparation, and in-vitro diagnostics. These nanometer-sized particles are superparamagnetic, a property resulting from their tiny size—only a few nanometers—a fraction of the width of a human hair (nanoparticles are approximately 1/1,000 thinner than human hair). Superparamagnetic nanoparticles are not magnetic when located in a zero magnetic field, but they quickly become magnetized when an external magnetic field is applied. When returned to a zero magnetic field they quickly revert to a non-magnetized state. Superparamagnatism is one of the most important properties of nanoparticles used for biomagnetic separation.
After its virtual edition in 2021, Merck’s IVD conference will return face-to-face again on March 24-25, in Madrid, Spain. During these two days, international experts and scientists will address key aspects of critical IVD Immuno and molecular assays. Attendees will discuss current and future IVD technologies and market trends while taking advantage of networking opportunities and attending the supplier exhibition.
Genomic DNA is abbreviated as gDNA or called chromosomal DNA because it is packaged into chromosomes. It is the genetic code that is present in every cell and is expressed in many different combinations that lead to different cell differentiation and expression. The DNA is transcribed into RNA molecules that become proteins with many different functions. Many laboratories around the world perform genomic DNA extractions. The purpose of the genomic DNA extraction is to separate the genomic DNA from the rest of the cell contents to study it. Genomic DNA is studied by those interested in learning about specific genes and learning from genomic sequencing.
Nucleic acids refer to biomolecules composed of nucleotides. A nucleotide is the name of a nucleic acid monomer which consists of a 5-carbon sugar base bound to a nitrogenous base and a phosphate group. The type of nucleotide is based on the type of nitrogenous base that is bound. For deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) the four predominantly found bases are guanine, adenine, cytosine, and thymine. For ribonucleic acids (RNA) the four main bases are guanine, cytosine, thymine and uracil. Both DNA and RNA are part of the central dogma of molecular biology and are studied extensively. Nucleic acids are also used for research and therapeutic purposes. In order to study and use nucleic acids, it is important to have a system of nucleic acid labeling. Nucleic acid labeling can also be used to track nucleic acids.
The ability to isolate cells is important in both clinical and research settings. The goal of cell separation is to isolate one population of cells that are of interest. There are several reasons for performing cell separation, some examples are interest in studying a cell type or using it for therapy such as T-cell therapy. Some researchers are interested in cell separation to be used for creating hybridoma cell lines or for testing drugs in vitro and seeing the effect of the drugs on cells. There are many available techniques for cell separation. These techniques differ in specificity of cell selection, cost of equipment, time to complete, technology needed, and skill required. Cell separation based on cell density is rapid and inexpensive but is unspecific. Still, it is a fundamental technique that is commonly used in a variety of settings for general cell separation.
In a recently published paper, researchers of the CIBER-BBN and the University Autonoma de Barcelona demonstrated that magnetic microparticles of 1 and 2.8 μm of diameter, in combination with an appropriate magnetic force, could greatly decrease the time needed to interact with and enter target cells, a clear advantage over other types of drug delivery systems.
Enzymes are proteins with the ability to catalyze chemical reactions. We have several articles you can read to learn more about proteins, their uses, and isolating them for research and clinical purposes. Check out our protein isolation article if you are thinking about how to best purify your protein of interest or read our protein assay article to learn more about working with proteins. Enzymes are particularly interesting and useful due to their catalytic activity. The molecule that goes into the enzyme for manipulation is called the substrate. You will often see this interaction called the “lock and key” interaction as the substrate has to fit just right into the pocket of the enzyme for it to work properly (enzymes are highly specific!), the way a key is very specific to the lock it goes into.
