An antibody derived from a goat is known as a goat antibody. Antibodies from goats can be used for a wide range of purposes, including research, diagnostic testing, and medical treatment. They are available from antibody production laboratories, which offer both custom and generic antibodies for a variety of applications. Goat antibodies are available in monoclonal and polyclonal forms.
Inoculating a goat with an antigen is the first step in the production of goat antibodies. Several inoculations are usually administered, followed by titer testing to ensure that the goat is producing antibodies and to determine the level of antibodies in the blood. Blood can be taken from the goat after it has produced enough antibodies to make an antiserum, which can then be purified to extract the antibodies. This is usually done by slaughtering and bleeding the goat in order to extract as many antibodies as possible.
Antibody purification is done in a laboratory using a variety of techniques. The goal is to extract pure antibodies from the antiserum in all cases. Impurities in the antiserum must be removed because they can interfere with the tasks for which the antibodies are used. Impurities in the fluid being tested, for example, could cause a false positive if a goat antibody is used to test for exposure to a particular disease.
After purification, a lab producing a goat antibody for a customer may add some options to the product. The goat antibody, for example, can be conjugated with a substance that fluoresces, acting as a tag for diagnostic testing. The cost of specialty services is usually added to the price of the goat antibody, with the lab charging fees based on the level of difficulty involved.
The method described above is used to create polyclonal goat antibodies. A cell that produces antibodies is grafted with a cancerous cell line that can potentially produce cells indefinitely to make monoclonal antibodies. These cloned cells make identical antibodies that can be used for medical treatment, diagnosis, and other purposes.
The time it takes for a goat antibody order to be fulfilled varies. If a laboratory has a goat antibody on hand, it can ship it out quickly. It may take several weeks or months to complete a custom or specialty project. When a researcher places an order, the lab can usually provide an estimate at the time of placement so that they know when to expect delivery.