Research Antibodies: Solutions for Today and Tomorrow

Global Biological Standards Institute, L, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract Antibodies are indispensable biological reagents around the world, yet are a major contributor to the current reproducibility crisis in preclinical research. A variety of issues can jeopardize antibody-based biomedical experiments, while the inability to replicate published data can often be traced to antibodies that were not properly validated. This NIH/NIGMS Research Conference (R13) Grant proposal will help fund a workshop co-sponsored and co-hosted by the Global Biological Standards Institute and The Antibody Society on September 25?27, 2016, at the Asilomar Conference Grounds in Pacific Grove, California. The workshop will be a central part of a year-long process that will engage key experts and stakeholder group representatives to examine and propose potential solutions that can be adopted across the life sciences. The meeting will focus on critical issues in the field, including standardization of characterization, performance, and validation of antibodies, as well as the introduction of recombinant, sequenced antibodies as a long-term potential path forward to improving the quality, reproducibility, and translation of antibody-based preclinical research. Approximately 80 workshop participants are planned, including 7 Steering Committee members, 38 panelists across 8 panels, 30 additional expert participants, and 5 staff and contractors. The workshop and related products will help the broader life science research community reach consensus around both short- and long-term solutions to address the pervasive lack of well characterized and validated antibodies in biomedical research.