: Can you share your perspective on the reproducibility issue associated specifically with the use of antibodies?
PS: We agree with many of the concerns and points of view being shared today about antibody reproducibility. Antibody companies should be striving to provide more detailed information about the products themselves and striving to provide more detail about exactly how the antibodies are used and tested. We work hard as a longtime developer and producer of antibody products to ensure that our customers have confidence in the antibodies we supply them.
: Can you tell us what your company is doing on a routine basis to make sure you are testing and validating the antibodies you manufacture or obtain from other sources?
PS: When we develop an antibody ourselves, or through a collaboration or licensed source, we ensure appropriate process controls and testing are in place to support performance consistency and proper product identification, handling and storage practices before we release them for sale.
When we source antibodies from other companies we follow similar steps to make sure that the products work as we describe them. This may involve direct testing, auditing and in some cases removing the product from the market when it does not meet our standards.
We also have a vigorous monitoring process once a new product is released to identify performance issues so we can address them directly.
: Do you have any advice, recommendations and/or best practices that scientists should follow when selecting and validating an antibody?
PS: We are like them; we are strong advocates for proof of performance, whether it is through a peer-reviewed journal or data provided by a supplier with a reputation for quality and customer service. When in doubt, one should be able to ask an advisor who can help. Organizations with a strong and engaging technical support staff are a good source for purchasing the right product the first time.
: What are your thoughts on the current efforts that are underway to tackle the reproducibility problem? Do you think they are realistic and implementable?
PS: From the supplier’s point of view, I think the answers are going to be somewhat unique to each company. I think everyone agrees it is a big challenge, especially if we try to think of just one or two ways to tackle such a diverse market of products and their uses.
Thus, what we like are the ideas of standardizing test methodology, education and increasing the transparency of how the product was used/tested. And in that context we still prefer the rigor of peer-reviewed publication data over just peer review. Our goal is to bring more of that data to the surface to help customers find what they are looking for with confidence.
: What else is your company doing to address reproducibility?
PS: We are looking to become more directly involved in the organized movements that are addressing antibody standards, including the evaluation of test methods that were recommended in these forums. Also near term, through our ongoing practice of customer interviews and feedback we will improve product search and usage experiences. And longer term, we certainly intend to pursue ways to address this issue more upstream, improving the criteria we use in new product selection and innovation.
Author Bio: Patrick Schneider is Head of R&D, Technology & Business Development for the Research Solutions business unit of Life Science at MilliporeSigma. Dr. Schneider has also held various Marketing, R&D and Business Development positions in Millipore, Serologicals Inc. and Chemicon including Head of Bioscience, Head of R&D & Business Development, and Vice President of Research Reagents SBU. Patrick received a Bachelor of Science degree from Northern Arizona University and a Ph.D. in Biology from University of California, Irvine.