Knight Scientific Limited
Harnessing the Glow of a Marine Mollusc
It has taken 2000 years for a mollusc to travel from the gourmet’s table to the scientist’s laboratory. The journey started with Pliny in AD 70 and reached its first climax when the luminescent protein produced by the marine rock-boring mollusc Pholas dactylus was first used by Drs Jan and Robert of Knight Scientific Limited (KSL) as a laboratory tool.
Since this use of Pholasin®, the name for the light-emitting protein, in the investigation of the activation of white blood cells, there have been many applications of KSL’s ABEL® (Analysis By Emitted Light) kits containing Pholasin®.
So what is so special about Pholasin®? Firstly Pholasin® emits light under the stimulus of some free radicals, other reactive oxygen species and peroxidase enzymes; and the list may not be complete. Secondly Pholasin® is extraordinarily sensitive to these substances making it possible to monitor free radical production and degranulation in less than 1µL of blood or just a few hundred cells.
In the ever increasing list of medical and normal conditions in which free radicals are implicated Pholasin® is now becoming a tool of choice for investigating the relationship between these free radicals, and the condition. And some assays are designed to measure the antioxidant status of biological fluids with reference to certain groups of oxidants.
KSL is the exclusive world-wide manufacturer of the unique light-emitting protein Pholasin® and associated ABEL® (Analysis By Emitted Light ) products for free radical research. The company is a world leader in products for free radical research. All the products are unique and most involve Analysis By Emitted Light (ABEL).
The company is based in Plymouth on the south west coast of England where it was founded in 1990, but the research of Jan and Robert Knight into the biology, biochemistry and bioluminescence of Pholas dactylus goes back to 1979. This research has enabled the company to supply the world wide and growing market for Pholasin® which it produces from the cultivated bioluminescent molluscs.
Over the years the company has developed a range of standardised test kits and has worked closely with research workers involved in free radical research in many diverse fields including: inflammatory disease management, immunology, infection, reperfusion injury, vascular surgery, cardiovascular research, cardiac surgery, dialysis, nephrology, haematology, drug testing, toxicity testing, sickle cell anaemia, tropical medicine, blood biocompatibility of materials and medical devices, endurance physiology, sports medicine, nutrition and antioxidant status.
The applications of ABEL® increases with the ever growing number of people using the kits. And KSL will be pleased to help you obtain the best results from the various products. Just contact us and see.
