Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is a microplate-based technique for detecting specific analytes such as antibodies, antigens, or other proteins in solution. It involves capturing the target of interest on the surface of the microplate wells before using enzyme-labeled antibodies to confirm analyte binding. A major advantage of ELISA is its sensitivity, which can reach pg/mL levels in complex sample types such as cell culture supernatant, serum, or other biological fluids. ELISA is also relatively easy to use, can be combined with automation to increase throughput, and, unlike most other immunoassays, can provide quantitative results.
Types of ELISA
There are fours main types of ELISA: In a direct ELISA, the target analyte becomes bound to the microplate surface before being detected with an enzyme-labeled primary antibody. An indirect ELISA is similar, but uses both an unlabeled primary antibody and a labeled secondary antibody for detection, which provides signal amplification. During a sandwich ELISA, the microplate wells are coated with an analyte-specific antibody, then a second analyte-specific antibody (which recognizes a different epitope) is used to detect the bound target. All of these assay formats can be converted to a competitive ELISA, in which the analyte of interest competes with a labeled reference for microplate binding; the more analyte that is present in the sample, the lower the signal.
Advantages of an off-the-shelf ELISA kit
While ELISA assays can be developed in-house, there are several benefits to buying off-the-shelf kits:
- Faster time to results
- More consistent performance
- Rigorous quality control
- Carefully optimized protocol
- Uninterrupted long-term supply
Custom assay development
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Featured suppliers
Abbexa
Abbexa is a UK-based supplier of biological tools including primary antibodies, secondary antibodies, proteins, ELISA and CLIA kits, and more. They have a comprehensive selection of fully validated and ready-to-use ELISA kits.
ABclonal
ABclonal's extensive catalog includes off the shelf antibodies, recombinant proteins, ELISA kits, enzymes, and molecular biology reagents. Designed to support a wide range of life science applications including genomics, proteomics, immunology, and diagnostics, ABclonal's products are manufactured in house with rigorous quality control to ensure reproducibility and research grade performance.
Antibodies.com
Antibodies.com supplies high-quality biological reagents to life science researchers at cost-effective prices. They are a trusted supplier of antibodies, proteins, immunoassays, and other companion reagents.
Arigo Biolaboratories
Arigo Biolaboratories offers a broad portfolio of antibody duos and antibody panels designed to support high-quality, reproducible research. Their range includes pathway duos, PTM duos, control duos, and ELISA duos, developed to meet diverse protein analysis needs. In addition, Arigo provides multiplexed ELISA kits that enable simultaneous quantification of multiple analytes.
Aviva Systems Biology
Aviva Systems Biology offers a large selection of over 20‘000 ELISA kits accross a broad range of species such as human, mouse, rat, bovine, pig, dog, and more. Additionally, they offer development and validation services for ELISA kits.
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Biorbyt
Biorbyt offers a wide range of reagents to meet your needs, from antibodies and ELISA kits to biochemicals. With over 40'000 ELISA kits, they offer matched-pairs, activity assays, and competitive ELISA.
Veterinary ELISA kits are available.
Boster Biological Technology
Boster Bio has been dedicated to providing affordable high-sensitivity, high-specificity ELISA kits, and WB/IHC compatible antibodies since its establishment in 1993. They offer antibodies rigorously validated for IHC, WB, ELISA, and Flow Cytometry, striving to deliver the highest-quality service and earning the trust of researchers globally.
Cloud-Clone
Cloud-Clone offers a comprehensive range of reliable reagents tailored for cutting-edge biomedical research. Their portfolio includes well-validated ELISA and CLIA kits for sensitive protein quantification, a wide selection of antibodies optimized for applications like Western blot, flow cytometry, and immunohistochemistry, as well as recombinant proteins and peptides for functional studies.
Mabtech
An ELISA is only as good as the antibodies that capture and detect the analyte of interest. Our meticulously validated antibodies ensure exceptional sensitivity and specificity. Mabtech offer ELISAs for selected cytokines, chemokines, immunoglobulins, and apolipoproteins for a range of species.
Award-winning ELISA kits: Mabtech have received an award from CiteAB twice. In both 2019 and 2023, Mabtech was highly commended in the "ELISA Kit Supplier to Watch" category, based on citations for their ELISA kits.
Want to know more about how to select the right ELISA kit for your needs? Read more in our blog post about ELISA kit selection: