Antibodies protect us from a wide range of infectious diseases and cancers and have become an indispensable tool in science—both for conventional immune response research as well as other areas related to protein identification analysis. This second edition of Making and Using Antibodies: A Practical Handbook provides clear guidance on all aspects of how to make and use antibodies for research along with their commercial and industrial applications.

Keeping pace with new developments in this area, all chapters in this new edition have been revised, updated, or expanded. Along with discussions of current applications, new material in the book includes chapters on western blotting, aptamers, antibodies as therapeutics, quantitative production, and humanization of antibodies. The authors present clear descriptions of basic methods for making and using antibodies and supply detailed descriptions of basic laboratory techniques. Each chapter begins with introductory material, allowing for a better understanding of each concept, and practical examples are included to help readers grasp the real-world scenarios in which antibodies play a part.

From the eradication of smallpox to combating cancer, antibodies present an attractive solution to a range of biomedical problems. They are relatively easy to make and use, have great flexibility in applications, and are cost effective for most labs. This volume will assist biomedical researchers and students and pave the way for future discovery of new methods for making and using antibodies for a host of applications.