Alexa Fluor®-conjugated anti-rat primary antibodies are directly labeled immunoreagents that combine a rat antigen-specific immunoglobulin with a member of the Alexa Fluor dye family, enabling single-step detection of target proteins in flow cytometry and imaging applications.
Introduction
These reagents bind specific rat antigens—such as CD4, CD8a, CD11b/c, and CD172a—without requiring a secondary antibody. The Alexa Fluor dyes provide high brightness and photostability across the visible to near-infrared spectrum, with commonly used conjugates including Alexa Fluor 488 (excitation approximately 495 nm, emission approximately 519 nm), Alexa Fluor 647 (excitation approximately 650 nm, emission approximately 668 nm), and Alexa Fluor 700 (excitation approximately 702 nm, emission approximately 723 nm). The direct conjugation eliminates secondary antibody incubation, reduces assay time, and avoids cross-reactivity from anti-rat secondary reagents—a particular advantage in rat-on-rat applications where endogenous immunoglobulins would otherwise produce high background.
Applications
Alexa Fluor-conjugated anti-rat primary antibodies are validated primarily for flow cytometry, with representative clones including anti-rat CD4 (clone W3/25, targeting a 48–52 kDa surface glycoprotein on T helper cells and macrophages), anti-rat CD8a (clone OX-8, binding the 32 kDa α chain of the CD8 differentiation antigen), and anti-rat CD11b/c (clone OX-42, reacting with the CR3 complement receptor on monocytes and granulocytes). These conjugates are quality-tested by immunofluorescent staining with flow cytometric analysis, with a suggested use of ≤0.25 µg per million cells in 100 µL volume. Beyond flow cytometry, these reagents support immunohistochemistry on frozen sections, immunofluorescence microscopy, and ELISA/FLISA formats. Working dilutions should be titrated empirically for each application and instrument configuration.
