Immunohistochemistry
& Immunocytochemistry


Immunohistochemistry is an important application of monoclonal as well as polyclonal antibodies to determine the tissue distribution of an antigen of interest in health and disease. Immunohistochemistry is widely used for diagnosis of cancers, because specific tumor antigens are expressed de novo or upregulated in certain cancers. The application is used routinely in validation of disease targets as it allows to visualize expression of the target in the affected tissue during the disease process. Immunohistochemistry requires the availability of biopsies, these are processed into sections with a microtome, then the sections are incubated with an appropriate antibody. The site of antibody binding is visualized under an ordinary or fluorescent microscope by a marker such as fluorescent dye, enzyme, radioactive element or colloidal gold that is directly linked to the primary antibody or to an appropriate secondary antibody.

Immunocytochemistry is a similar application that visualizes the subcellular localization of antigens of interest in isolated cells or cell populations. Cells are grown or fixed on slides, incubated with specific antibody, and then the antigen is visualized by an appropriate marker as above.
Antibody Solutions has generated many monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies for immunohistochemistry and immunocytochemistry applications and has developed optimized protocols.

For example, we have made a series of antibodies to human cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2), one of which (AS66-P) is particularly useful for immunohistochemistry applications. COX-2 is a proinflammatory enzyme that is induced at sites of inflammation and dysregulated in many cancers. Our antibody was used for analysis of COX-2 expression in cystectomy biopsies of bladder cancer patients during a 5-year follow up study. In this study, Liu et al. (2001) utilized A66-P immunostaining of paraffin embedded bladder tissue (left image) and showed that COX-2 expression in bladder tumor biopsies correlated with survival.

Immunohistochemistry can also be used to determine the function of specific gene products in fundamental biological processes such as development and apoptosis. Using a monoclonal antibody custom-made by Antibody Solutions against the Drosophila melanogaster homologue of p53, Ollmann et al. (Cell, 101:91, 2000) revealed an ancestral pro-apoptotic function for p53 and identified D. melanogaster as an ideal model system for elucidating the p53 apoptotic pathways induced by DNA damage.

Antibody Solutions offers a wealth of expertise in developing antibodies for immunohistochemistry and immunocytochemistry applications. Please contact us with your specific application needs.

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