Pan Na Channel α Subunit (D2I9C) Rabbit mAb

What is a Recombinant Antibody and Why is it Important?

Recombinant antibodies offer several key advantages compared to traditional antibodies.
These include superior lot-to-lot consistency, continuous supply, and animal-free manufacturing.
As such, recombinant antibodies are seeing increased use for scientific research, especially as a means of
addressing the ongoing reproducibility crisis.

What is a Recombinant Antibody?

Traditional polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies are the product of normal B cell development and genetic recombination.
They are generated by immunizing an animal with an antigen to elicit an immune response. While polyclonal antibodies are
secreted by many different B cell clones and recognize multiple antigenic epitopes, monoclonals originate from a single B
cell clone and are specific for just one epitope.

Recombinant antibodies are monoclonal, but their production involves in vitro genetic manipulation.
After cloning the antibody genes into an expression vector, this is then transfected into an appropriate host cell line
for antibody expression. Mammalian cell lines are most commonly used for recombinant antibody production, although cell
lines of bacterial, yeast, or insect origin are also suitable.

Superior Lot-to-Lot Consistency

Because recombinant antibody production involves sequencing the antibody light and heavy chains, it is a highly controlled
and reliable process. In contrast, hybridoma-based systems for producing monoclonal antibodies are subject to genetic
drift and instability, increasing the potential for lot-to-lot variability or loss of antibody expression. Recombinant
antibodies are highly consistent from lot to lot, thereby ensuring reproducible experimental results.

Scalability

In vitro methods for producing antibodies are amenable to large-scale production, meaning antibody availability is
unlikely to become a limiting factor. Moreover, since the recombinant antibody sequence is known, continuity of supply
is assured; in situations where an antibody will be used to support large, long-term studies, this can be an especially
critical factor.

Animal-free Manufacturing

Unlike traditional methods for antibody production, recombinant approaches avoid the need to use animals.
Where polyclonal antibodies are purified directly from the serum of the immunized host, and monoclonals are purified
from either hybridoma-derived tissue culture supernatant or ascites, recombinant antibodies are instead purified from
the tissue culture supernatants of transfected host cell lines.
Regardless of whether an antibody is polyclonal, monoclonal or recombinant, it must always be properly validated
in the intended application prior to experimental use. At CST, we adhere to the

Hallmarks of Antibody Validation™,
six complementary strategies for determining the specificity, sensitivity, and functionality of an antibody in any
given assay. By carefully tailoring these strategies to each antibody product, we guarantee that CST antibodies
will work as expected, to help you achieve results you can trust.