ABSTRACT
Many breakthroughs in biomedical science have been achieved by the use of polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies, and the development of quantitative radioimmunoassay and enzyme immunoassay technology has replaced millions of live animals, previously used in bioassays to estimate concentrations of hormones and enzymes. One of the earliest and probably best known examples of polyclonal antibodies’ importance in medical advancement is the discovery by Behring and Kitasato
CONTENTS
Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 467 The Immune Response ..................................................................................................................468 Antibodies ...................................................................................................................................... 470 Polyclonal Antibodies versus Monoclonal Antibodies .................................................................. 470 Production of Antibodies ............................................................................................................... 471
The Antigen ............................................................................................................................... 471 The Adjuvant ............................................................................................................................. 472 The Animal ............................................................................................................................... 475
Species .................................................................................................................................. 475 Species/Strain-Stock ............................................................................................................ 476 Sex ........................................................................................................................................ 476 Age ....................................................................................................................................... 477
The Immunization Protocol ...................................................................................................... 477 The Injection Route .............................................................................................................. 477 The Volume of Injection ....................................................................................................... 477 The Quantity of Antigen ...................................................................................................... 479 Booster Immunization .......................................................................................................... 479
Blood Collection .......................................................................................................................480 General Aspects .............................................................................................................................480
