What are the Differences Between Primary Antibody and Secondary Antibody?

We can define primary antibodies as immunoglobulin binding specifically to proteins. This is an antibody that directly binds to the antigen. On the other hand, secondary antibodies help in the identification, sorting, as well as purification of the target antigens by binding to the heavy chains of primary antibodies. In this article, we have thrown light on the main differences between a primary antibody and a secondary antibody.

The similarities

• Both primary antibodies and secondary antibodies share the antibody’s typical structure.

• Both take an active part in immune responses.

The differences

1. We can define primary antibodies as immunoglobulin specifically binding to any specific protein or any other biomolecules for purification or detection and measuring. On the other hand, secondary antibodies happen to be a type of antibody that binds with antigens indirectly for helping in detecting, sorting, as well as purifying target antigens.

2. Primary antibody will be binding to the antigen directly. On the contrary, secondary antibodies are not going to bind to the antigen directly. Instead, they will interact with the primary antibodies through binding.

3. We make use of primary antibodies as biomarkers for identifying some ailments such as diabetes, cancer, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and so on. However, we use secondary antibodies in immunoglobulin.

What are the benefits of using secondary antibodies?

It is a fact that secondary antibodies are going to detect and bind to primary antibodies and not to any particular antigen existing within the specimen. The usage of secondary antibodies helps to improve sensitivity significantly because of the resultant amplification of the signal from a number of secondary antibodies binding to primary antibodies.

Conclusion

Thus, it is evident from the above-mentioned article that antibodies are usually of types, namely, primary and secondary antibodies. While primary antibodies will be capable of binding directly to the antigen, secondary antibodies are not going to bind directly to the antigen. This happens to be the primary difference between these two types of antibodies.