Cell Surface Markers

Cell surface markers are proteins expressed on the surface of cells that often conveniently serve as markers of specific cell types. For example, T cell and B cell surface markers identify their lineage and stage in the differentiation process. These lymphocytes differentiate into multiple cell subtypes, necessary for specific biological processes. During this process, lymphocytes express different surface receptors, which can be used to identify cellular subtypes, such as progenitor cells or terminally differentiated T helper cells. Inappropriate cellular ratios of differentiated white blood cells, such as the relative amounts of Th1 and Th2 cells, occur in pathophysiological conditions such as autoimmunity. The presence of cell surface markers can also determine if a cell type expresses the specific receptor important for a biological response. Testing for surface marker expression is also essential to determine if an experimental drug or ligand will be recognized by the cell type of interest. Many markers for specific cell types are known, however, there are others remaining to be discovered, such as novel T cell subtypes.

QIAGEN provides a broad range of assay technologies for cell surface marker research that enables analysis of gene expression and regulation, epigenetic modification, genotyping, and signal transduction pathway activation. Solutions optimized for cell surface marker studies include PCR array, miRNA, siRNA, mutation analysis, pathway reporter, chromatin IP, DNA methylation, and protein expression products.