Microwave fixation of whole peripheral nerve for rapid and efficient enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) screening of monoclonal antibodies

Testing hybridoma supernatants for antibodies of interest involves extensive screening, particularly when the immunogen comprises whole cells. The number of different screening procedures is often large and unmanageable and depends on whether one is interested in, for example, cell surface or intracellular binding. This paper describes an initial screening technique using whole tissue homogenate rather than the individual tissue components. The tissue is fixed to the surface of 96-well microtitre plates by microwaves using a conventional microwave oven. This technique provides a rapid and cost-effective means of screening large numbers of monoclonal antibodies.