The CS Tag: A More Sensitive and Specific Protein Tag

Protein tags are short linear sequences that are added onto proteins in order to facilitate their detection. The most commonly used tags are FLAG, Myc, HA and His ). Tagging proteins has two primary uses. The first is for protein expression in heterologous systemsand the second use is in localization studies. . We and others have found that antibodies to these tags usually give satisfactory results but do not have the sensitivity and specificity to make for a smooth work flow. Indeed most investigators use multiple copies of the tag to enhance specificity and sensitivity. Nonetheless, even with multiple copies, troubleshooting is usually required to work out conditions with the best signal to noise ratio. Indeed, investigators frequently test several of the commercially available antibodies to a given tag to find the one that works best in their assays. Here we describe a new tag / antibody combination that has increased sensitivity and specificity compared to the commercially available tag / antibody combinations. Thus far we have had excellent results with this tag in western blots.

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