It depends on the nature of the immunogen used to generate the antibody, and the nature of the epitope recognized by the antibody. Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of protein epitopes recognized by antibodies, these are linear and conformational. Linear epitopes are polypeptide sequences that are present in the denatured protein, whereas conformational epitopes are only present in the natively folded structure of the protein. For western blotting (assuming that it is done under denaturing conditions), the antibody must be able to detect a linear epitope, since the proteins in the sample will be linearized during sample prep and electrophoresis. For ELISA, antibodies that recognize epitopes present in the folded protein are typically used, though note that these could be either linear or conformational epitopes, and thus some, but not all ELISA antibodies could be used for western blotting. Another caveat is that there some linear epitopes that may be 'buried' in the secondary structure of the protein, and thus only accessible under denaturing conditions. Most antibody manufacturers list which applications their products have been tested for, so it is usually best to consult the validation data given for a particular antibody.
It depends on the nature of the immunogen used to generate the antibody, and the nature of the epitope recognized by the antibody. Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of protein epitopes recognized by antibodies, these are linear and conformational. Linear epitopes are polypeptide sequences that are present in the denatured protein, whereas conformational epitopes are only present in the natively folded structure of the protein. For western blotting (assuming that it is done under denaturing conditions), the antibody must be able to detect a linear epitope, since the proteins in the sample will be linearized during sample prep and electrophoresis. For ELISA, antibodies that recognize epitopes present in the folded protein are typically used, though note that these could be either linear or conformational epitopes, and thus some, but not all ELISA antibodies could be used for western blotting. Another caveat is that there some linear epitopes that may be 'buried' in the secondary structure of the protein, and thus only accessible under denaturing conditions. Most antibody manufacturers list which applications their products have been tested for, so it is usually best to consult the validation data given for a particular antibody.
It is true there are different kinds of epitopes and the main way to get an answer here is trying to perform the blotting. If I have faced the problem, I would start from the detection, biotin-conjugated antibodies in the dilution used for ELISA (just for empirical similarity). But certainly with controls for the correct westen-blot procedure: line with pure or highly abundant antigen, line with some biotinilated protein to ensure the validity of streptavidin-HRPO, and surely, loading controls. You may use the same tube of diluted antibody for several time if you do not want to spend too much antibodies on the experiments (especially with some conservant added, but do not mix NaN3 and HPRO).
1. First priority is to use whichever is the polyclonal.
2. If both the antibodies are monoclonal, check which one recognizes continuous epitope (discontinuous epitope may lost due to denaturaiton of protein for SDS-PAGE).
3. Alternatively, try both the antibodies in Western and see which one will work.
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