I am pipetting an antibody with 50% w/v glycerol. However, I need the antibody solution to dry on the nitrocellulose membrane. How can I do this without damaging the antibody?
Glycerol is a humectant (keeps things moist) so this will probably never will dry.
I would try to buffer exchange Ab first using an Amicon Ultra device from MilliporeSigma (0.5 mL, 4 mL, or 15 mL versions with choice of membrane cut offs of 3K to 100K depending on Ab size) to remove/reduce glycerol concentration prior to application to nitrocellulose. See user guides for operation/centrifugation speeds, etc.
Procedure-Add known volume of Ab/glycerol to device (input). Bring to max device volume with exchange buffer and centrifuge. Discard filtrate. Bring concentrate back to max volume with exchange buffer and centrifuge again. Note that this can be done multiple times if needed. Recover concentrated Ab, If necessary, re-dilute with exchange buffer to original input volume. Apply to membrane.