Precision Antibody provides custom antibody development for Boston biopharma companies, therapeutic research teams, diagnostic developers, academic laboratories, and translational research programs. We design each project around the antibody’s intended application, helping clients identify candidates with the binding, specificity, functional activity, and downstream performance their work requires.
Our capabilities include mouse and rat monoclonal antibody development, fully human monoclonal antibody development, polyclonal antibody generation, anti-idiotype antibody development, functional screening, antibody characterization, production, purification, sequencing, humanization, and related downstream services.
All laboratory work is performed at our facility in Columbia, Maryland. We support Boston and Greater Boston organizations through direct scientific consultation, defined project milestones, scheduled communication, and secure delivery of project materials and data.
Precision Antibody was founded by scientists, run by scientists, and created for scientists. We are experts in antibody development, but what makes us different from all the other antibody development experts out there?
Precision Antibody’s founder Dr. Jun Hayashi is an accomplished Developmental Immunologist who has established the antibody development platform unique to the company. Dr. Ginette Serrero, CEO is a Cancer Biologist with expertise in Biochemistry and target discovery which add basic understanding and solving of biological questions to the antibody development strategy.
Dr. Ginette Serrero, CEO is a Cancer Biologist with expertise in Biochemistry and target discovery which add basic understanding and solving of biological questions to the antibody development strategy. They have been working together and have had long and successful careers in Academia and Industry.
They lead Precision Antibody with a core team of Ph.Ds. with expertise in Immunology, Cancer Biology, Biochemistry, Molecular & Cell Biology, and Developmental Biology. Our team’s wide range of skills and knowledge allows us to understand your goal in the global biology context and enable us to provide professional guidance in designing and implementing a perfect project to successfully develop antibodies that will meet customer’s expectations.
Boston is home to biotechnology companies, pharmaceutical research groups, academic laboratories, diagnostic developers, research hospitals, and emerging therapeutic programs working across many areas of life science. These organizations often require antibodies for targets or applications that cannot be addressed with an existing catalog reagent.
A custom program may be needed when a team is working with:
Our custom antibody development services can be configured according to the biological target, research objective, available antigen, screening method, desired deliverables, and downstream plans.
We work with clients whose antibody needs extend beyond simple antigen recognition. The appropriate development strategy depends on what the antibody must ultimately do.
For a diagnostic program, the priority may be specificity, reproducibility, pair compatibility, or performance in a lateral flow or sandwich ELISA format. For a therapeutic research program, the team may need neutralization, receptor activation, receptor blocking, internalization, or binding to a native cell-surface target. For a translational research project, the antibody may need to perform in flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, biomarker detection, or a custom biological assay.
This is why we begin with the intended application rather than treating every antibody project as the same technical exercise.
Boston-area organizations may engage us to support goals such as:
A successful antibody development program should produce more than clones that bind an antigen under one screening condition. The candidates must be evaluated according to the assay, biological system, or research decision they are expected to support.
We design screening strategies around that requirement whenever the project scope and available materials make it possible.
An antibody that performs well in an initial binding assay may not automatically perform well in another application.
For example, an antibody may bind purified recombinant antigen in an ELISA but fail to recognize the native protein on a cell. Another candidate may bind a receptor without blocking its interaction, triggering internalization, or changing downstream signaling. An antibody suitable for western blotting may recognize a denatured epitope but perform poorly in flow cytometry or immunohistochemistry.
These differences can arise from:
Application-specific screening helps reduce the risk of advancing candidates that bind under convenient laboratory conditions but do not meet the actual needs of the program.
The screening strategy should be selected during project planning, not added as an afterthought.
We review the target, antigen format, expected mechanism, downstream assay, available controls, and desired candidate profile. Depending on the project, screening may include binding assays, cell-based assays, competition studies, internalization studies, neutralization testing, flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, antibody pairing, or another defined functional method.
Our development and characterization capabilities can support antibodies intended for applications such as:
The exact screening plan depends on target biology, assay availability, project scope, and the amount and quality of starting material.
Monoclonal antibodies provide a defined and renewable reagent source with consistent target recognition. They are widely used in therapeutic discovery, diagnostics, assay development, biomarker research, protein detection, and functional studies.
We develop mouse and rat monoclonal antibodies using project-specific immunization, hybridoma generation, screening, cloning, and characterization strategies.
Mouse and rat platforms can offer practical options for generating monoclonal antibodies against proteins, peptides, cells, small molecules, and other antigen formats.
The species and immunization strategy should be selected according to:
Following immunization and hybridoma generation, candidate clones can be screened using project-relevant assays. Positive clones may then be expanded, subcloned, characterized, sequenced, produced, and purified according to the agreed project scope.
Affinity is important, but it should not be evaluated in isolation.
A very high-affinity antibody may not recognize the desired epitope, pair effectively in a sandwich assay, internalize after binding, neutralize biological activity, or distinguish a target from a related protein. Candidate selection should consider the complete performance profile required for the project.
Relevant selection factors may include:
Custom monoclonal antibodies may be developed for:
Fully human monoclonal antibodies are valuable in therapeutic discovery and preclinical research when the project requires human variable and constant regions from the beginning of the discovery process.
Precision Antibody offers fully human monoclonal antibody development using transgenic mouse technology. These animals are designed to generate antigen-specific antibodies with fully human IgG sequences.
A fully human antibody development program can include immunization, immune response monitoring, hybridoma generation, clone screening, subcloning, characterization, and production.
The program design should reflect:
Precision Antibody presents certain fully human monoclonal antibody programs as approximately 60-day development workflows. Actual timing depends on the antigen, immune response, screening complexity, functional assay requirements, number of candidates, and requested deliverables.
Fully human antibody generation may be considered when a research team wants to begin therapeutic discovery with human antibody sequences rather than generating a nonhuman antibody and humanizing it later.
It may be relevant for:
The choice between fully human discovery, traditional monoclonal development, and later humanization should be based on the target, program stage, technical requirements, budget, timeline, and development plan.
After initial clone selection, additional work may include:
Fully human discovery is one stage within a broader therapeutic research process. Further engineering, developability evaluation, manufacturing development, safety assessment, and regulatory work may be required outside the scope of an initial antibody development program.
Therapeutic antibody programs require careful alignment between target biology, antibody binding, functional activity, and downstream development goals.
We support research teams seeking antibodies that do more than detect a target. Depending on project scope, candidates may be evaluated for receptor interaction, ligand blocking, signaling effects, internalization, neutralization, or other biological properties.
Internalization can be an important property for antibodies being evaluated for antibody drug conjugate research or other delivery applications.
An internalizing antibody must first bind an accessible target on the cell surface. After binding, the antibody and target complex should enter the cell through an appropriate biological pathway. The rate, extent, and consistency of internalization may affect whether a candidate is suitable for further study.
Internalization screening may evaluate:
The assay design depends on the target, cell system, available controls, labeling method, and intended interpretation.
Neutralizing antibodies are selected for their ability to inhibit a biological interaction or activity. Agonistic antibodies are selected for their ability to activate a receptor or signaling pathway.
A binding result alone does not confirm either function.
Functional evaluation may require:
These assays should be selected according to the biological mechanism the research team wants to study.
Some antibody programs are more challenging because of the target’s structure, biology, expression, conservation, or available antigen.
Examples may include:
For these projects, early scientific planning is especially important. Antigen format, immunization design, species selection, screening method, control strategy, and functional assay availability can influence the probability of identifying useful candidates.
No development method can guarantee success for every antigen. A well-designed program can, however, improve the relevance of the immune response and help identify issues before unnecessary downstream work is performed.
Anti-idiotype antibodies recognize unique regions associated with another antibody. They are commonly developed to support bioanalytical workflows involving therapeutic antibody detection, pharmacokinetics, anti-drug antibody analysis, and related research.
Precision Antibody develops anti-paratope and other anti-idiotype antibodies according to the intended assay format and required specificity.
Bioanalytical assays may require antibodies that recognize the therapeutic antibody selectively in the presence of serum proteins, related antibodies, or target antigen.
Important selection factors can include:
Developing more than one useful clone may provide flexibility when selecting capture and detection pairs.
Anti-idiotype antibodies may be used in:
The development plan should define the therapeutic antibody format, desired specificity, assay matrix, target sensitivity, and expected use of each reagent.
Characterization helps research teams compare candidates and select antibodies using evidence beyond a positive screening signal.
Precision Antibody offers characterization services that may include Biacore and Octet analysis, affinity ranking, binding kinetics, epitope binning, antibody pairing, quantification, isotyping, sequencing, biochemical evaluation, and project-specific functional assays.
Affinity describes the strength of an antibody’s interaction with its target. Binding kinetics provide additional information about how quickly the antibody associates with the target and how quickly it dissociates.
These measurements can help distinguish candidates that appear similar in an endpoint assay.
Biacore and Octet platforms may be used to evaluate:
The appropriate method depends on the antibody, antigen, assay format, sample quality, and project objective.
Epitope binning groups antibodies according to whether they appear to recognize overlapping or distinct regions of the target.
This information can be useful when:
Antibody pairing evaluates whether two antibodies can bind the target in a compatible assay configuration. Strong individual binders do not always form a successful pair, so empirical testing is often necessary.
Functional testing connects antibody binding with biological performance.
Depending on the project, evaluation may include:
The most useful candidate is not always the clone with the strongest signal in one assay.
A balanced selection may consider:
Once a promising clone has been selected, sufficient material may be needed for characterization, assay development, validation, preclinical research, or distribution across a research team.
Precision Antibody supports antibody production and purification at scales ranging from milligram quantities to larger project requirements.
Production may be performed using:
The production method should be selected according to the antibody format, required quantity, downstream application, purity requirements, schedule, and available cell line.
Purification methods may include:
Final materials can be prepared according to agreed requirements for buffer, concentration, vialing, and quantity. Deliverables may include a Certificate of Analysis, depending on the project scope.
Additional support may include:
Every project has different scientific requirements, but a typical program follows a defined sequence from consultation through delivery.
The first step is to understand the target and the role the antibody must perform.
We may discuss:
The antigen strategy may involve a recombinant protein, peptide, cell-based antigen, small molecule conjugate, or another appropriate format.
Project design should consider whether the antigen represents the native structure, whether critical epitopes are accessible, and whether the chosen immunization species is likely to generate a useful immune response.
The next stage depends on the selected development platform.
For traditional monoclonal antibody development, animals are immunized and immune responses are monitored before hybridoma generation. For fully human antibody development, an appropriate transgenic mouse platform is used.
The schedule and number of immunizations may vary according to antigen performance and immune response.
Candidate screening begins with methods suited to the target and then progresses toward the intended application.
This stage may include:
Selected clones may be evaluated for affinity, kinetics, epitope diversity, function, specificity, isotype, sequence, pairing, and production characteristics.
The depth of characterization should match the scientific decision the data must support.
Final candidates may be expanded, produced, purified, formulated, vialed, and delivered according to the agreed scope.
The project may also continue into sequencing, recombinant expression, humanization, stability work, or additional functional testing.
Clear communication is essential when an external partner is supporting a critical research program.
Our project approach can include:
This structure helps Boston clients remain involved in project decisions even though laboratory work is performed in Maryland.
Antibody development timelines depend on the platform, antigen, immune response, screening method, functional assay requirements, number of clones, and downstream services.
Precision Antibody presents certain mouse and rat monoclonal antibody development programs as approximately 40 to 60 days.
This range should be treated as a typical estimate for suitable project formats rather than a guarantee for every antigen or assay. Complex targets, additional immunizations, difficult screening requirements, custom assay development, or extensive characterization may extend the schedule.
Certain fully human monoclonal antibody programs may be completed in approximately 60 days.
The final schedule depends on:
Common factors include:
A realistic schedule should be established after the scientific requirements are reviewed.
Outsourcing can provide access to specialized antibody development capabilities without requiring a research organization to build every platform internally.
For Boston biotechnology and research teams, external support may be especially useful when internal scientists need to remain focused on target biology, therapeutic strategy, assay interpretation, or program decisions.
An external antibody development partner can support teams that:
The cost of an antibody program is not limited to initial development. Time can also be lost when selected clones fail in the intended application and the team must repeat screening, change assay design, or restart discovery.
Defining the intended application early allows the project team to build more relevant screening criteria into the development process.
Precision Antibody states that customers own the clones developed during their projects. This helps clients maintain control of valuable research assets and plan future production, sequencing, engineering, or licensing activities according to their own program needs.
We can support organizations in Boston, Cambridge, Watertown, Waltham, Lexington, Somerville, Allston, and other Massachusetts research communities without implying that we maintain a local laboratory in those areas.
Project interaction can be managed through scientific consultations, scheduled calls, milestone reports, data review, secure information exchange, and shipment of materials from our Columbia, Maryland facility.
Precision Antibody performs its laboratory operations in Columbia, Maryland. Our facility supports antibody development, screening, characterization, production, purification, and related services for clients throughout the United States, including organizations in Boston and Greater Boston.
Our laboratory is located at 9130 Red Branch Road in Columbia, Maryland.
The facility is AAALAC and OLAW accredited. Laboratory activities are performed in-house at this location rather than represented as work completed at a Boston office.
Distance does not prevent active scientific collaboration.
A Boston client can participate through:
Precision Antibody serves Boston-area organizations, but we do not claim to operate a Boston laboratory. Clear geographic information helps clients understand where the work is performed and how the project will be managed.
A productive initial discussion begins with clear information about the target, application, and desired outcome.
Not every detail must be finalized before contacting us, but the following information can help us evaluate the project and recommend an appropriate approach.
Useful details may include:
The intended use should be described as specifically as possible.
Examples include:
The project team should also consider what it wants to receive.
Potential deliverables include:
A useful consultation should address:
No. Precision Antibody performs its laboratory work at its facility in Columbia, Maryland.
We serve Boston-area clients through remote scientific consultation, milestone-based project management, scheduled communication, data review, and shipment of project materials. We do not represent the company as having a Boston office or laboratory.
Certain mouse and rat monoclonal antibody development programs may take approximately 40 to 60 days.
The actual schedule depends on the antigen, immune response, hybridoma generation, screening strategy, functional assay requirements, subcloning, characterization, and final deliverables. A project-specific timeline should be established after technical review.
Yes, internalization and neutralization assays can be incorporated into suitable antibody development programs.
The assay design depends on the target, biological model, available cell lines, mechanism of action, controls, labeling strategy, and project scope. Functional requirements should be discussed during initial planning.
Yes. Precision Antibody offers fully human monoclonal antibody development using transgenic mouse technology.
The resulting candidates can be evaluated for binding, specificity, functional activity, affinity, kinetics, and other project-defined properties. Additional sequencing, expression, purification, and characterization services may also be included.
Precision Antibody states that customers own the clones developed for their projects.
Ownership terms, deliverables, and any project-specific conditions should be documented clearly in the applicable proposal or agreement before work begins.
We can design custom programs for many complex targets, including cell-surface proteins, conformational targets, conserved proteins, peptides, and other challenging antigens.
Success cannot be guaranteed for every target. The development strategy should consider antigen design, species selection, immune response, screening method, available controls, and intended application.
Available services may include Biacore and Octet analysis, affinity ranking, binding kinetics, epitope binning, antibody pairing, isotyping, sequencing, quantification, biochemical characterization, internalization, neutralization, flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, and other project-specific assays.
The appropriate characterization package depends on the candidate profile and the decision the research team needs to make.
Yes. Precision Antibody can support antibody discovery, screening, characterization, production, purification, sequencing, humanization, recombinant expression, and related services.
Clients can choose a focused development project or a broader program that continues into downstream activities.
A useful quote request should include the target, antigen format, intended application, preferred antibody type, screening requirements, functional assay needs, desired deliverables, quantity requirements, and target timeline.
Available sequences, proteins, cells, controls, previous results, and relevant publications can also help the scientific team evaluate the project.
A strong custom antibody program begins with a clear understanding of the target and the scientific role the antibody must perform.
Precision Antibody supports Boston biopharma companies, therapeutic discovery teams, diagnostic developers, academic laboratories, and translational researchers seeking monoclonal, fully human, polyclonal, or anti-idiotype antibodies.
Our approach can connect project planning with immunization, hybridoma generation, application-specific screening, functional evaluation, characterization, production, purification, and downstream support. Laboratory work is performed at our Columbia, Maryland facility, while Boston clients remain involved through defined milestones and direct scientific communication.
To begin a project discussion, prepare the information currently available about:
The most useful antibody is not simply the clone that produces the strongest initial signal. It is the candidate that provides the specificity, function, reproducibility, and evidence needed for the next scientific decision.
Precision Antibody develops custom antibody programs around that standard, helping Boston research teams move from target concept to practical, application-relevant antibody candidates with clear project structure and continued scientific support.
Precision Antibody™ is the forefront of the global Custom Antibody industry & it is led by the innovative minds in immunology and antibody development field.
