This work was supported by NIH grants (NS070577 and NS084869).

Note: The composition of all solutions cited below can be found in the Materials/Equipment Table.
1. Protein A Column Antibody Purification
<ol>
	<li>Equilibrate a protein A spin column and all required buffers to room temperature for 15 min prior to starting the procedure.</li>
	<li>Dilute the immune serum 1:1 with Protein A IgG Binding Buffer. (5 ml of serum is recommended).</li>
	<li>Gently tap a protein A spin column on the bench top to dislodge any resin that may be lodged in the cap. R...

<ol>
	<li>Hawk, J. D., Abel, T. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=The+role+of+NR4A+transcription+factors+in+memory+formation.">The role of NR4A transcription factors in memory formation.</a> Brain Res. Bull. 85 (1-2), 21-29 (2011).</li><li>Law, S. W., Conneely, O. M., DeMayo, F. J., O'Malley, B. W. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Identification+of+a+new+brain-specific+transcription+factor,+NURR1.">Identification of a new brain-specific transcription factor, NURR1.</a> Mol. Endocrinol. 6 (12), 2129-2135 (1992).</li><li>Zetterstr&#246;m, R. H., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Dopamine+neuron+agenesis+in+Nurr1-deficient+mice.">Dopamine neuron agenesis in Nurr1-deficient mice.</a> Science. 276 (5310), 248-250 (1997).</li><li>Kadkhodaei, B., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Nurr1+is+required+for+maintenance+of+maturing+and+adult+midbrain+dopamine+neurons.">Nurr1 is required for maintenance of maturing and adult midbrain dopamine neurons.</a> J. Neurosci. 29 (50), 15923-15932 (2009).</li><li>Decressac, M., Volakakis, N., Bj&#246;rklund, A., Perlmann, T. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=NURR1+in+Parkinson+disease--from+pathogenesis+to+therapeutic+potential.">NURR1 in Parkinson disease--from pathogenesis to therapeutic potential.</a> Nat Rev Neurol. 9 (11), 629-636 (2013).</li><li>Pe&#241;a de Ortiz, S. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Hippocampal+Expression+of+the+Orphan+Nuclear+Receptor+Gene+hzf-3/nurr1+during+Spatial+Discrimination+Learning.">Hippocampal Expression of the Orphan Nuclear Receptor Gene hzf-3/nurr1 during Spatial Discrimination Learning.</a> Neurobiol Learn Mem. 74 (2), 161-175 (2000).</li><li>Vecsey, C. G., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Histone+deacetylase+inhibitors+enhance+memory+and+synaptic+plasticity+via+CREB:CBP-dependent+transcriptional+activation.">Histone deacetylase inhibitors enhance memory and synaptic plasticity via CREB:CBP-dependent transcriptional activation.</a> J. Neurosci. 27 (23), 6128-6140 (2007).</li><li>Col&#243;n-Cesario, W. I., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Knockdown+of+Nurr1+in+the+rat+hippocampus:+implications+to+spatial+discrimination+learning+and+memory.">Knockdown of Nurr1 in the rat hippocampus: implications to spatial discrimination learning and memory.</a> Learn Mem. 13 (6), 734-744 (2006).</li><li>McQuown, S. C., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=HDAC3+is+a+critical+negative+regulator+of+long-term+memory+formation.">HDAC3 is a critical negative regulator of long-term memory formation.</a> J. Neurosci. 31 (2), 764-774 (2011).</li><li>Hawk, J. D., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=NR4A+nuclear+receptors+support+memory+enhancement+by+histone+deacetylase+inhibitors.">NR4A nuclear receptors support memory enhancement by histone deacetylase inhibitors.</a> J. Clin. Invest. 122 (10), 3593-3602 (2012).</li><li>Bridi, M. S., Abel, T. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=The+NR4A+orphan+nuclear+receptors+mediate+transcription-dependent+hippocampal+synaptic+plasticity.">The NR4A orphan nuclear receptors mediate transcription-dependent hippocampal synaptic plasticity.</a> Neurobiol Learn Mem. 105, 151-158 (2013).</li><li>Gill, S. C., von Hippel, P. H. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Calculation+of+protein+extinction+coefficients+from+amino+acid+sequence+data.">Calculation of protein extinction coefficients from amino acid sequence data.</a> Anal. Biochem. 182 (2), 319-326 (1989).</li><li>Smith, P. K., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Measurement+of+protein+using+bicinchoninic+acid.">Measurement of protein using bicinchoninic acid.</a> Anal. Biochem. 150 (1), 76-85 (1985).</li><li>Zetterstr&#246;m, R. H., Williams, R., Perlmann, T., Olson, L. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Cellular+expression+of+the+immediate+early+transcription+factors+Nurr1+and+NGFI-B+suggests+a+gene+regulatory+role+in+several+brain+regions+including+the+nigrostriatal+dopamine+system.">Cellular expression of the immediate early transcription factors Nurr1 and NGFI-B suggests a gene regulatory role in several brain regions including the nigrostriatal dopamine system.</a> Brain Res. Mol. Brain Res. 41 (1-2), 111-120 (1996).</li><li>Xiao, Q., Castillo, S. O., Nikodem, V. M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Distribution+of+messenger+RNAs+for+the+orphan+nuclear+receptors+Nurr1+and+Nur77+(NGFI-B)+in+adult+rat+brain+using+in+situ+hybridization.">Distribution of messenger RNAs for the orphan nuclear receptors Nurr1 and Nur77 (NGFI-B) in adult rat brain using in situ hybridization.</a> Neuroscience. 75 (1), 221-230 (1996).</li></ol>

The authors have nothing to disclose.

The success of this protocol relies on the availability of pure proteins for characterization of the antibodies raised against a specific member of the protein family of interest. There is no need to purify the antibodies using protein A/G until it is clearly established that there are significant cross-reactivities by ELISA and Western blotting.
As stated in the text, it is important to avoid suspending the protein(s) to be cross-linked to the column in an amine-containing buffer such as Tris...

The transcription factor Nurr1 and its homologs (Nur77 and Nor1) belong to the nuclear receptor subfamily 4A (NR4A)1. They are also orphan receptors because their endogenous ligands are not identified yet. Nurr1 was first cloned in 1992 and although known to be expressed in the brain2, its essential role for development and maintenance of midbrain dopamine neurons was revealed by knockout mouse studies3. In addition, its important role for maintenance of midbrain dopamine neurons was recently demonstrated by a conditional knockout study4. Due to these elegant studies showing Nurr1&#8217;s critical roles for midbrain dopamine neurons, many subsequent studies have largely focused on the midbrain dopamine neurons and dopamine-related neurodegenerative disorder, Parkinson&#8217;s disease (PD)5.
Notably, Nurr1 is expressed not only in the midbrain dopamine (mDA) neurons, but also in diverse brain areas2, suggesting that it may have functional roles in many non-DA areas, which is strongly supported by more recent studies showing that Nurr1 plays important roles in various brain functions. For examples, it was shown that memory-inducing activities such as learning, or other hippocampus-dependent tasks result in up-regulation of Nurr1 expression in the hippocampus6,7. In addition, knock down of Nurr1 expression in the hippocampus was sufficient to impair long-term memory and/or synaptic plasticity8-11, strongly suggesting that Nurr1 plays diverse roles in many brain areas. Thus, to further understand the cell-type-specific and subcellular expression of Nurr1, it is desirable to use Nurr1-specific antibodies, which do not exhibit any cross-reactivity to its homologs Nur77 or Nor1. This paper describes a pre-adsorption protocol to generate Nurr1-specific antibodies and present additional data showing its specificity.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>Purified Ligand Binding Domain from Nurr1, Nor 1 and Nur77</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Column Storage solution</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>AminoLink Coupling Resin and Kit</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>44890</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Protein A spin column</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>89978</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Dulbecco&#39;s Phosphate-Buffered Saline</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>21-031-CV</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>96 well Flate-bottom plates, High Flange, 330&#956;L</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>3455</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>10% Normal Goat Serum</td>
			<td>KPL</td>
			<td>50-675-69</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Milk Diluent/ Blocking Concentrate&#160;</td>
			<td>KPL</td>
			<td>50-82-01</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>IgG Elution Buffer</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>21004</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>UltraPure 1 M Tris-HCI Buffer, pH 7.5</td>
			<td>Life Technologies</td>
			<td>15567-&#173;&#8208;027</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Micro BCA Protein Assay Kit</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>23235</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Horse Radish Peroxidase conjugated Goat anti-Rabbit IgG (H+L)</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>31460</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ni-NTA Resin</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>88221</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>3, 3&#39;, 5, 5&#39; Tetramethylbenzydine</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>34028</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>2N H2SO4</td>
			<td>Macron Fine Chemicals</td>
			<td>H381 05</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Protein A IgG Binding Buffer</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>21001</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>IgG Elution Buffer</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>21004</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Neutralization Buffer</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>1M Tris-&#173;&#8208;HCl pH 8.5</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Column Storage solution</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Phosphate Buffered Saline containing 0.02% sodium azide</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Spectra/Por 7 pre-treated dialysis tubing</td>
			<td>Spectrum Labs</td>
			<td>132128</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>10 ml Disposable columns</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>29924</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>AminoLink Coupling Buffer</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>0.1M sodium phosphate, 0.05% NaN3, pH 7.0</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Quenching buffer</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>1M Tris. HCI, 0.05% NaN3, pH 
			7.4</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Wash Solution</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>1M NaCl, 0.05% NaN3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>ELISA Blocking buffer</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>1% Normal Horse serum (NHS), 1% Normal Goat Serum (NGS) in 1X KPL milk diluent</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Storage Solution</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>PBS pH 7.4 containing 0.02% sodium azide</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Micropipettes: 10 &#956;l; 20 &#956;l; 200 &#956;l; 1000 &#956;l</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

production of nurr-1 specific polyclonal antibodies free of cross-reactivity against its close homologs, nor1 and nur77

The nuclear receptor subfamily 4 (NR4A) is composed of 3 related proteins sharing a DNA binding domain (DBD) and a ligand-binding domain (LBD). The nuclear receptor related 1 protein (Nurr1 or NR4A2) plays a key role in the maintenance of the dopaminergic system. Dopamine dysfunctions associated with the Nurr1 gene include Parkinson&#8217;s disease, schizophrenia and manic depression among others. Furthermore, recent evidence indicates that Nurr1 is also expressed in other brain areas such as the hippocampus and plays critical roles for learning and memory. The other members of the family are nerve growth factor IB (Nur77 or NR4A1) and neuron-derived orphan receptor 1 (NOR1 or NR4A3). To help investigate the precise functional roles of Nurr1 in dopaminergic and other brain region-related neuronal dysfunctions antibodies devoid of cross-reactivities against Nur77 and NOR1 were needed. Since the proteins are more divergent in their LBDs than in their DNA binding domains immunization with purified LBDs should yield antibodies specific for Nurr1 with minimal reactivities against Nur77 and/or NOR1. Although anti-Nurr1 antibodies were successfully generated these showed significant immunoreactivity against the other members of the family. Affinity chromatography over immobilized Protein A followed by pre-adsorption against immobilized Nur77 and NOR1 LBDs yielded Nurr1 specific antibodies free of cross-reactivity. Here, we selectively target antibodies against a specific member of a highly conserved family of proteins by immunizing animals with their most divergent regions followed by removing cross reactive antibodies by pre-adsorption. The goal of the protocol is to increase polyclonal antibodies specificity through pre-adsorption against cross-reactive antigens.

A comparison of Protein A column purified Nurr1-specific antibodies with Protein A purified anti-Nurr1 antibodies followed by passage through Nur77 LBD and Nor1 LBD columns is shown in Figure 1. As can be seen, Protein A-purified Nurr1 antibody exhibited a strong binding to Nurr1 LBD. However, it also showed significant binding to Nur77 LBD and to Nor1 LBD. When Protein A-purified Nurr1 antibodies were further purified against Nur77 LBD and Nor1 LBD, the final affinity purified Nurr1 antibodies exhibited...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Production of Nurr-1 Specific Polyclonal Antibodies Free of Cross-reactivity Against Its Close Homologs, Nor1 and Nur77 at JoVE.com

Production of Nurr-1 Specific Polyclonal Antibodies Free of Cross-reactivity Against Its Close Homologs, Nor1 and Nur77

Here, we selectively target antibodies against a specific member of a highly conserved family of proteins by immunizing animals with their most divergent regions followed by removing cross reactive antibodies by pre-adsorption.

The nuclear receptor subfamily 4 (NR4A) is composed of 3 related proteins sharing a DNA binding domain (DBD) and a ligand-binding domain (LBD). The ...

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7.4K 조회수.  McLean Hospital. Here, we selectively target antibodies against a specific member of a highly conserved family of proteins by immunizing animals with their most divergent regions followed by removing cross reactive antibodies by pre-adsorption.