What You Need to Know About scFv/Fa
Fragment antigen-binding (Fab fragment) is a region on an antibody that binds to antigens.
It is composed of one constant and one variable domain of each of the heavy and
the light chain. Single-chain variable
fragment (scFv) is not
actually a fragment of an antibody, but instead is a fusion protein of the
variable regions of the heavy (VH) and light chains (VL)
of immunoglobulins, connected with a short linker peptide of ten to about 25
amino acids.
Fab
fragments differ from scFv's as they contain both variable domains and constant
regions, thus are more complex in construction and ultimate expression. Creative
Biolabs is an expert with many years of experiences in antibody production. It has established a solid platform
for scFv and Fab constuction. The same heavy and light variable chains used for
scFv construction can also be used in the construction of Fab.
There
are three routes to have a scFv or Fab target a specific antigen in Creative
Biolabs. The first approach is to generate a mouse hybridoma clone, then
convert full IgG [or IgM] into a scFv or Fab; the second one is to create an
immunized phage display scFv or Fab mouse library, then use the antigen to
screen the library; the third method is to use the antigen to screen a premade
scFv or Fab antibody phage display library [usually a human one] to get scFv or
Fab clones directly. We are also able to convert chicken IgY into scFv or Fab
fragments.