How do you use the CiteAb reagent search engine? Interview with Lubna Nuhu-Soso
5
Min Read
In this blog:
- We speak with Lubna about her research into neuron development and MRD57
- Find out how she uses CiteAb to find the best antibody options for WB and ICC
- Discover other ways CiteAb can be used to save time
Today, we speak with Lubna Nuhu-Soso, Biology PhD student at the University of York.
Lubna shares insights into her research into a rare neurodevelopmental disorder and explains how she leverages CiteAb to help efficiently find and select the best antibodies for immunocytochemistry (ICC) and Western blotting (WB), ultimately streamlining her research.
We started this blog series on search engine users to mark ten year of CiteAb. It’s been a fantastic way to learn more about the scientists using our platform, and share some insight into the ways the search engine can be used. You can read more from the series here:
- Dr Harvinder Virk, NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer from the University of Leicester and co-leader of the Only Good Antibodies community
- Dr Andrea Radtke, NIAID/NIH
- Dosh Whye, Human Neuron Core Boston’s Children’s Hospital
What is your current work focused on?
Lubna’s research primarily focuses on understanding the functions of two critical genes—both of which encode kinases involved in cell signaling. Disruptions in kinase signaling can lead to severe consequences, including neurodevelopmental disorders.
“The balance of signalling is important for cell functions and ultimately organismal function. There is still so much we don’t understand about many kinases.,” Lubna explains. “Therefore, understanding where these proteins end up (localisation) and the roles they play (function) is important.”
By investigating these genes, Lubna hopes to understand them better and what can happen when they are perturbed. Her PhD was focusing on MRD57, an autosomal dominant neurodevelopmental disorder otherwise known as ‘intellectual developmental disorder’. This disorder can manifest itself in various ways, with most seeing delayed psychomotor development, language delay and behavioural abnormalities.
She is also performing research into neuron development and function more generally.
How do you use the CiteAb platform in your work?
Finding the right antibodies for experiments is crucial, and CiteAb has been a useful tool in this process for Lubna since the start of her PhD journey.
“When I first started my PhD, CiteAb was one of the first resources my supervisor pointed me to, and it has been a reliable tool ever since,” she says. “I use a lot of antibodies for both immunocytochemistry and Western blotting, and whenever I need to find or purchase a new antibody, I start my search on CiteAb to identify the best options.”
CiteAb lists over 8 million antibodies from hundreds of suppliers, giving a helicopter view of what’s available instead of having to go between different supplier sites to compare options.
One of CiteAb’s key features is its ability to filter search results based on specific experimental attributes. Researchers can refine their searches by application type, reactivity, clonality, conjugation, and more. This can help to narrow down searches quickly.
What do you like about CiteAb?
Lubna also uses CiteAb to review data and publications linked to specific antibodies of interest. Using this information can help to better understand how products have been used successfully in similar experimental contexts. She flagged two features as helpful:
- Summarised dilution data
- Reference links
By assessing past research data she can figure out optimal dilutions, or troubleshoot her own work when running into difficulty with antibody experiments.
‘I particularly appreciate the section that summarises the different dilutions used and for which applications. It helps to shorten research time especially when using a new antibody. ‘
‘What’s also great about it is the links to all the references, which again massively saves time when doing some research!’
A Practical Example: The Phospho-Tau Antibody (AT8)
Lubna recalls a recent example where CiteAb proved to be helpful in her research.
I’ve recently been using a phosphotau antibody (AT8) which has over a thousand references linked to it. I found it super helpful to determine what a specific signal using the antibody should look like.
I also got useful information for my cell lysis technique by going through a few of those publications.
Wrap-up
A massive thanks to Lubna for taking the time to speak with us about her work and the CiteAb search engine!
It is always fantastic to hear stories of how the search engine is being used. We were founded by a scientist struggling to find antibodies in his lab – and it’s amazing that ten years later the search engine is helping so many more researchers in this challenge.
We hope this has given you some more ideas for how you can use the search engine in your own work.
You can try out a search here:
Do you use CiteAb, and want to be featured in a CiteAb blog? Just get in touch with the team!
- Skye and the CiteAb team