Easy to use and consistent ELISA kit

May 21, 2015

Seattle Aquarium
Laboratory
Laboratory Specialist

Overall

Quality of Results

Ease-of-Optimization

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Company:

Enzo Life Sciences, Inc.

Product Name:

Corticosterone ELISA

Catalog Number:

ADI-900-097

Our facility's laboratory uses these kits to monitor corticosterone levels of sea otters (feces) and harbor seals (saliva). After establishing baseline levels for an individual animal, we examine when spikes occur, and based on the behavioral data collected by the biologists/trainers, attempt to match any spikes with behaviors or events on the days around the noted peaks. Our laboratory has been using these assay kits for well over 10 years and are very pleased with the consistency of results.

Experimental Design and Results Summary

Application

Monitoring levels of corticosterone in sea otters & harbors seals

Starting Material

Feces from sea otters & saliva from harbor seals

Protocol Overview

Our laboratory uses standard, established protocols for sample preparation. We follow a methanol-based extraction protocol for detecting the hormone in fecal samples. For saliva sample preparation, we follow a basic protocol that involves drying and reconstituting the samples with assay buffer for analysis.

Tips

As with any assay kit, it is important to use proper pipetting techniques. The standard curve preparation can make or break an assay.

Results Summary

Baseline data is determined, and attempts are made to match any peaks in the data with an event/behavior for each individual being monitored.

Additional Notes

None

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Summary

The Good

Ease of use plus these kits are a good option for monitoring hormones without needing special lab space/permitting to perform RIA testing

The Bad

As with most EIA/ELISA data, cannot compare directly to RIA data

The Bottom Line

This corticosterone ELISA kit is a reliable, easy to use kit that produces consistent results.

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