Synthetic guinea pig insulin B-chain C-terminal decapeptide: a novel immunogen for generating immunocytochemical-grade antisera.

Antisera to guinea pig insulin are not commonly available, largely because of the short supply and limited immunogenicity of the intact hormone. To overcome these problems we have employed a novel reagent, synthetic guinea pig insulin B-chain C-terminal decapeptide, as a hapten for raising antibodies that react with intact guinea pig insulin. The decapeptide, coupled to bovine serum albumin, was successfully used as an immunogen in rabbits. The resulting antiserum was employed for immunocytochemical staining of guinea pig insulin in pancreatic sections. The specificity of the staining was verified by both pre-absorption and preimmune serum controls. The utility of this new antiserum for investigations of guinea pig insulin physiology is discussed.