Rabbit monoclonal antibodies are a useful and preferred tool in research and development.. They are used in many applications, including immunofluorescence, immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry, western blot, and ELISA. Compared to other animal models (e.g., mouse and rat), rabbits provide a better system for monoclonal antibody production because the rabbit immune system responds to a broader range of antigens. Also, physically, rabbits are larger animals with larger spleens that can produce more antibodies.

Recombinant Rabbit Monoclonal Antibodies

Rabbit monoclonal antibodies are similar in consistency to traditional mouse monoclonal antibodies while offering better specificity and sensitivity. Rabbits are immunized and the resulting spleen cells are fused with partner cells to make an immortal cell line that expresses antibodies. The antibodies are derived from a single clone and characterized for performance in applications. The best clone is then selected for antibody production.

Figure 1. Rabbit monoclonal antibody production.

Because the rabbit natural repertoire is more diverse than the mouse, and the spleen is larger, their antibodies exhibit higher affinity for the antigen. Thus, rabbit monoclonal antibodies tend to give superior sensitivity in the application for which the clones were screened. An additional advantage of the rabbit diversity is that it allows for epitope recognition that may not be feasible with other systems.

• Natural diversity
• High affinity and specificity
• Novel epitope recognition
• Cross-reactivity to human and mouse targets
• Ease of humanization

See our Invitrogen Recombinant Rabbit Monoclonal Antibodiesfor even greater specificity, sensitivity, and optimal performance. Recombinant rabbit monoclonal antibodies resemble rabbit monoclonals produced in hybridomas. However, because recombinant rabbit antibodies are derived from cloned DNA sequences, they are not susceptible to cell-line drift or lot-to-lot variation.