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Th17 cells are a subset of activated CD4+ T cells that are responsive to IL-1R1 and IL-23R signaling. They are regulated by the IL-6/STAT3/ROR gamma t lineage control. Th17 cells act as a bridge between adaptive and innate immunity where they promote neutrophil activation, immunity to pathogens, and inflammation.

Th17 cells produce the following inflammatory cytokines

• IL-17A
• IL-17F
• IL-17AF
• IL-21
• IL-22
• IL-26 (human)
• GM-CSF
• MIP-3 alpha
• TNF alpha

Th17 Cells Differ From Th1 and Th2 Cells

Through the study of IL-23, it was discovered that an alternate Th cell subset promotes chronic inflammation and tissue damage. Th17 cells were classified as an additional effector CD4+ T cell subset based on their independence from the transcription factors GATA3 and T-bet and the cytokines IFN gamma and IL-4, used to define Th1 and Th2, respectively.

T follicular helper (Tfh) cells are a regulatory class of specialized effector T helper cells that are essential in the development of antigen-specific effector and memory B cell responses. 

Regulatory (Treg) cells are specialized CD4+ T cells that function to maintain self-tolerance and immune homeostasis by suppressing the activation, proliferation, and effector functions of various immune cells.

Embryonic stem cells (ESC) and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can differentiate into various types of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). Hematopoietic stem cells possess the property of self-renewal, a feature characterized by the ability of HSC to proceed through numerous cell divisions and maintain an undifferentiated state.  Through subsequent cell differentiation, HSC form populations of progenitor cells that become committed to the main hematopoietic cell lineages:

June 26, 2012

Whether you are a core facility that makes monoclonal antibodies every day or a scientist that is trying to generate a monoclonal antibody for the first time, the process can be long and arduous.  Because we screen thousands of clones each year, we developed an easy and accurate assay for isotyping monoclonal antibodies during hybridoma development and we would like to share this assay with you.

Bead based assays, such as FlowCytomix Multiplex Immunoassays, enable the parallel analysis of multiple analytes in short time. However, if sensitivity is not optimal, a multiplex assay may create more questions than it provides answers. High quality standard curves help to estimate the significance of data points. So, good assay sensitivity leads to increased confidence in the reliability of your results!

At the recent Keystone Symposia joint meeting on The Biology of Cytokines and The Th17 Cells in Health and Disease that took place in Keystone, Colorado February 5-10, 2012, one key theme reigned supreme - AhR.

Selecting the appropriate isotype control may be an important element in flow cytometry experiments.  Isotype control antibodies have no specificity for a target cell yet retain all the non-specific characteristics of the antibodies used in an experiment.   The purpose of such a control is to:

It goes without saying that at some point in performing immunohistochemistry (IHC) experiments on formalin-fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue, you will come across an antibody that just does not seem to work. After carefully checking to make sure you properly titered your primary antibody, confirmed your secondary antibody does recognize the species in which your primary antibody was made, and tried digesting your tissue with multiple enzymes, you might give up ever trying to get this antibody to work!