BUSINESS WIRE
ST PAUL, Minn., Dec 09, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) --
MD Biosciences, a global biotechnology company focused in inflammations
and neurology research, announces the launch of Lumican and Keratocan
Monoclonal Antibodies. Both Lumican and Keratocan play a role in the
development and maintenance of corneal transparency making them ideal
for applications in Eye and Cornea Research.
Lumican and Keratocan belong to the Small Leucine Rich Proteoglycan
(SLRP) family. Keratocan was originally found to be a cornea specific
keratan sulphate proteoglycan. Lumican is a proteoglycan expressed in
extracellular matrix (ECM) and connective tissues where it has been
reported to contribute to collagen fibrillogenesis, tissue hydration,
migration and proliferation. Lumican modified with keratan sulphate,
constitutes one of the major proteoglycans of the corneal stroma, where
it stimulates cell migration on the corneal epithelium and is also
believed to play a regulatory role for keratocan. Mutations of keratocan
cause cornea plana in humans, which is often associated with glaucoma,
whereas the absence of Lumican leads to formation of cloudy corneas.
This suggests that Keratocan and Lumican have different roles in
regulating the formation of stromal extracellular matrix.
Both the Lumican
Monoclonal Antibody (Catalog 1042007) and the Keratocan
Monoclonal Antibody (Catalog 1042008) are IgM antibodies that are
affinity purified on a thiophilic column. The Lumican antibody
recognizes a protein epitope and is specific for human, bovine, mouse
and porcine tissues. The keratocan antibody recognizes a protein core
epitope and is specific for human, bovine, porcine, mouse and chicken
tissues. Both antibodies are supplied as liquid, ready to use, at a
concentration of 0.1 mg/mL for ELISA, Western Blot and IHC applications.
About MD Biosciences
MD Biosciences provides products and pre-clinical services for companies
engaged in inflammations and neurology research. The company is
headquartered in Switzerland under Morwell Diagnostics and has
specialized laboratories located in Minnesota, Glasgow, and Israel. A
panel of scientific experts provides companies' in-depth expertise and
technologies to tackle problems and provide flexible drug discovery
solutions, enabling smarter results faster.
The information in this press release should be considered accurate
only as of the date of the release. MD Biosciences has no intention of
updating and specifically disclaims any duty to update the information
in these press releases.