Scientific Overview

General Overview

Antibodies are part of the body’s immune system; they are proteins that recognize and bind to other molecules (toxins) or organisms (bacteria, viruses) that are foreign to the body. This lab produces, purifies, and characterizes antibodies that can be used to help identify and isolate molecules of interest. The lab aids other VARI researchers in identifying unknown proteins, in characterizing proteins never before isolated, and in “engineering” proteins that have potential application in clinical diagnosis, prognosis, and immunotherapy. The lab has developed the sensitive Met3 antibody against the cancer-related protein Met, and also has produced antibodies against separate molecular components of anthrax toxin in collaboration with the Duesbery lab.