Bangs Laboratories Adds Streptavidin Coating to QuantumPlex™ Product Line

February 2001, Indianapolis, IN. In January 2001, Bangs Laboratories released GAM-coated QuantumPlex™ beads to be used for multiple analyte-detection research applications in flow cytometry. Now, Bangs Laboratories is adding a new line of streptavidin-coated beads to their QuantumPlex™ product array.

Both the anti-Mouse IgG and streptavidin-coated QuantumPlex beads are available in 4.4 and 5.5 micron sizes. Each kit consists of 5 or 10 bead sets, dyed with varying amounts of BLI's Starfire Red™ dye, which are suitable for use with any flow cytometer. Anti-Mouse IgG coating permits conjugation of mouse monoclonal antibody, and streptavidin allows binding of biotinylated ligands. A 10-bead kit allows users to detect up to 10 analytes per sample, or analyze 5 samples for two analytes.

To produce QuantumPlex™, Bangs Laboratories began with two different populations of "cell-sized" polymer beads and dyed both populations with 4 different levels or intensities of dye. BLI's proprietary fluorochrome is excitable by either Ar or He/Ne laser with sharp emission in FL3 (and minimal carryover into FL1 or FL2). Dyed beads are then coated with our anti-Mouse antibodies or streptavidin. Each set consists of a blank bead population plus four narrow and cleanly separated peaks, with no overlap, corresponding to the four different levels of fluorescence. BLI lab testing demonstrates that each bead population will collect mAb-FITC or biotin-FITC complex.

For further information, please contact Bangs Laboratories by phone: 800-387-0672 or +1-317-570-7020, fax: +1-317-570-7034, or visit the company's website: http://www.bangslabs.com.