Question:

We recently bought a set of monoclonal antibodies to VZV glycoproteins H, B, E and I from your company. Unfortunately we have been unsuccessful in getting them to react by immunofluorescent staining of VZV -infected cells (commercially supplied by Bion Enterprises UK) and wondered whether you could offer any likely explanations as to why they fail to react in this assay. We are using the recommended dilutions indicated on the data sheets you supply. Many thanks.

Resolution:

I just went to the Bion Enterprises website to try to find out what strain of VZV they use on their slides and did not find that information. That is a possible cause of your dilemma. Additionally, I would try lower dilutions of antibody or the conjugate to boost reactivity. If these measures do not help, I would suggest duplicating the conditions that led to our results, i.e. our slides and our conjugate. It is also possible that you simply 'missed it'. These mabs are not extremely bright and obvious sometimes. When you try the above suggestions, make sure that cells are examined closely. Please let me know how it goes.