AbD to sell DJ-1-specific MAbs

AbD Serotec, a division of German synthetic antibody specialist MorphoSys AG, has published a scientific research paper which employed antibodies generated from its MorphoSys HuCAL GOLD antibody library. Using this system, a set of monoclonal and fully-human mini-antibodies was selected that specifically recognize an oxidized form of the DJ-1 (PARK7) protein. A team of scientists led by Hiroyoshi Ariga at Japan's Hokkaido University subsequently analyzed these antibodies in detail and published the results in the December issue of Neuroscience Letters.

According to AbD, the analysis demonstrates that the HuCAL-based antibody fragments provide a set of useful probes for studying the protein DJ-1, which was initially identified by researchers at Hokkaido University as a novel cancer target and has recently been linked to certain forms of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. AbD says it will make the DJ1-specific antibody available via its sales catalog and customer web site.

DJ-1 is considered to play a role in transcriptional regulation and anti-oxidative stress reaction, and loss of its function is thought to result in the onset of Parkinson's disease. The protein has three potential oxidation sites. Recent findings indicate that the oxidation status, especially at position C106, modulates functions of DJ-1 and deregulation of C106 oxidation leads to the onset of diseases. Beyond its potential involvement in PD and AD, it has been reported that expression levels of DJ-1 were elevated in patients with breast, smoking-derived lung, prostate and melanoma cancers.