What is BrdU assay?

What is BrdU assay?

Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation assays have long been used to detect DNA synthesis in vivo and in vitro. The key principle of this method is that BrdU incorporated as a thymidine analog into nuclear DNA represents a label that can be tracked using antibody probes.

How is BrdU detected?

Cells that have recently performed DNA replication or DNA repair can be detected with antibodies specific for BrdU using techniques such as immunohistochemistry or immunofluorescence. BrdU-labelled cells in humans can be detected up to two years after BrdU infusion.

How does BrdU labeling work?

Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) is a thymidine analog that incorporates DNA of dividing cells during the S-phase of the cell cycle. Once incorporated, these nucleoside analogs serve as cell cycle and proliferation markers that can be detected using labeled probes to identify cells that are actively proliferating.

What is BrdU and how does it detect mitosis?

Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) variously abbreviated as BrdU, BudR, and BrdUrd, is a synthetic thymidine analog that gets incorporated into the DNA of dividing cells during the S-phase of the cell cycle and has a long history of heavy use in molecular and cytokinetic studies (1).

How is cell proliferation measured?

Besides overall metabolic activity, cell proliferation may be measured by examining one or more specific markers within a cell. A well-published example is the BrdU incorporation assay. Another such marker is proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), which promotes DNA replication in actively proliferating cells.

How does BrdU cause mutation?

During S phase of the cell cycle (when DNA replication occurs), BrdU can be incorporated in place of thymidine in newly synthesized DNA molecules of dividing cells. Because BrdU can replace thymidine during DNA replication, it can cause mutations, and its use is therefore potentially a health hazard.

What is the purpose of BrdU?

Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) is a thymidine analog that incorporates DNA of dividing cells during the S-phase of the cell cycle. As such, BrdU is used for birth dating and monitoring cell proliferation.

What are the methods of biological proliferation?

Cell proliferation assays are mainly divided into four methods: metabolic activity assays, cell proliferation marker assays, ATP concentration assays, and DNA synthesis assays.