Monoclonal Antibodies for High-Throughput H5N1 Hemagglutinin Screening (Clade 2.3.4.4b)
Emerging H5N1 Strains Require Well-Characterized Antibody Reagents
The rapid emergence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b has intensified the need for antibody reagents that are not only reactive, but deeply characterized early in discovery workflows. As antibody libraries expand in response to evolving influenza strains, researchers face a growing challenge: distinguishing meaningful biological diversity from functional redundancy. Without early insight into binding kinetics, epitope coverage, and competitive binding behavior, promising programs risk advancing suboptimal or overlapping clones, slowing progress and increasing downstream development risk. Addressing this challenge requires monoclonal antibodies specifically developed and validated for high-throughput screening environments, where speed, differentiation, and data quality are critical for informed candidate selection.
Monoclonal Antibody Development to Support H5N1 Discovery Workflows
Rockland developed a diverse panel of monoclonal antibodies targeting the hemagglutinin (HA) protein of avian influenza H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b to support discovery and applied research workflows. Antibody generation was based on a recombinant HA trimer, enabling a safe and scalable development strategy without the need to handle live virus while preserving native, structurally relevant epitopes.
This approach supported the rapid generation of a large antibody panel, followed by early differentiation using the Octet® BLI platform for off-rate ranking to prioritize clones with distinct binding behavior. Subsequent epitope analysis revealed multiple non-competing antibody populations, highlighting candidates suitable for further evaluation in assay development and exploratory functional studies.
Together, this work established a robust foundation of well-characterized monoclonal reagents designed to perform in high-throughput screening environments and accelerate early decision-making in influenza research.
Figure. Representative BLI sensogram illustrating real-time binding using the Octet BLI platform. Learn more about Rockland's BLI services.
High-Throughput Characterization of Anti-H5N1 HA Monoclonal Antibodies
This application note demonstrates how a panel of anti-hemagglutinin (HA) monoclonal antibodies developed by Rockland was leveraged to support automated, high-throughput screening against the emergent H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b. Using the Octet® RH96 system for label-free biolayer interferometry, large antibody libraries were evaluated for key attributes, including binding kinetics and competitive epitope interactions, at a scale and speed not achievable with conventional approaches. Integration of automated liquid handling enabled extended, unattended epitope binning experiments, generating a comprehensive interaction matrix that revealed distinct, non-competing antibody populations. The study highlights how pairing purpose-built monoclonal reagents with advanced screening workflows accelerates early discovery decisions and strengthens the foundation for downstream therapeutic and vaccine research.
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Available Antibodies for High-Throughput H5N1 Screening
The antibodies below were generated to support early discovery assessment of H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b and were evaluated in a high-throughput characterization setting, enabling efficient differentiation of binding behavior and epitope diversity across a large antibody panel. This work combined Rockland’s expertise in monoclonal antibody development with automated screening and characterization workflows implemented by Sartorius®, illustrating how high-quality reagents and scalable analytical platforms can work together to accelerate antibody discovery and research into emerging infectious diseases.
| Product | Epitope Bin | Isotype | Off-rate Rank (Kd) |
| H5 HA 2.3.4.4b Antibody (13A6) | 1 | IgG1/Kappa | 2.26E+00 |
| H5 HA 2.3.4.4b Antibody (16E7) | 2 | IgG1/Kappa | 4.12E-02 |
| H5 HA 2.3.4.4b Antibody (23F2) | 2 | IgG1/Kappa | 3.89E-03 |
| H5 HA 2.3.4.4b Antibody (17C5) | 4 | IgG1/Kappa | 1.02E-03 |
| H5 HA 2.3.4.4b Antibody (18A4) | 3 | IgG1/Kappa | 1.06E-03 |
| H5 HA 2.3.4.4b Antibody (22D2) | 3 | IgG1/Kappa | 5.25E-03 |
| H5 HA 2.3.4.4b Antibody (1D4) | 1 | IgG1/Kappa | 7.90E-04 |