The Beta-actin Antibody as a Loading Control

One of six actin isoforms so far identified, beta actin is a highly conserved cytoskeletal protein involved in cell structure, motility, and cohesion. We at Novus Biologicals have many different beta-actin products in our catalog, used in areas such as cytoskeleton and signal transduction research. They are also used as loading controls in protein assays. Beta-actin is known as a “housekeeping” protein, i.e. it is expressed constantly, and at high levels, in all the cell types used in protein research. It is therefore a useful loading control in, for example, Western blot analysis. Loading controls serve a number of purposes; they ensure the protein of interest has been correctly loaded on the gel, that it is being transferred correctly, and that all reagents are functioning normally. So long as the molecular weight of the test protein is sufficiently different to that of the beta-actin antibody, distinct bands will be achieved.

beta-Actin Antibody (8H10D10) [NBP1-47423]
Western blot analysis using anti-Beta Actin mAb against NIH/3T3 (1), Jurkat (2), Hela (3), CHO (4), PC12 (5), HEK293 (6), COS (7), A549 (8) and MCF-7 (9) cell lysates.

In 2010, D. Grunwald and R.H. Singer used the beta-actin antibody to demonstrate a new fluorescence microscopy technique for in vivo imaging of mRNA during nuclear pore transport, using labelled beta-actin mRNA. The nuclear pore is the only link between the nucleus and cytoplasm, and of great interest to molecular biologists. However, it is only around 120nM in diameter, making in vivo light microscopy studies impossible. By utilizing fluorescence microscopy, it was possible to spatially measure the three stages of mRNA transport (docking, transport and release) with nanometer precision. The highest quality and purity of the products in our antibody catalog makes them ideal for studies of this kind.

Novus Biologicals offers many Beta-actin reagents for your research needs including:

• Beta-actin Antibodies
• Beta-actin Lysates
• Beta-actin RNAi
• Beta-actin Peptides and Proteins