Can any one suggest good pERK antibody and also what is the best time point to get good activation?

[achamess]

Hi @SamineniV,

welcome!

The pERK antibody that most people use is this one from Cell Signaling: Phospho-p44/42 MAPK (Erk1/2) (Thr202/Tyr204) Antibody | Cell Signaling Technology

This is an excellent antibody and gives good staining if there is real signal. I’ve used at 1:500 in free floating spinal cord sections. @zhzhj131421 and @zhisrich have both gotten beautiful staining with this ab in this way. @janehartung also has experience pERK staining with this antibody.

Best time point is dependent on what model or stimulus you’re using. See the other discussion here about neuropathic models:

Time course of light touch-induced pERK in Neuropathic Models

I’m looking for some references for phospho-ERK induction in the dorsal horn in response to light touch stimuli (e.g. cotton) in neuropathic models, namely CCI or SNI. For example, in the CFA model, Gao et al. used cotton brush on the hindpaw for 5 minutes and quantified pERK in the dorsal horn following stimulation. Are there comparable papers for pERK in neuropathic models? Mostly, I want to know the best time point. @tberta @thicunha @rurongji

In general though, after a stimulus, such as capsaicin or other noxious stimulus, the pERK signal is very rapid, peaking at about 5 mins. This is in contrast to IEGs such as Fos, which usually peak around 1-2 hours. See the review by Gao and @rurongji : c-Fos and pERK, which is a better marker for neuronal activation and central sensitization after noxious stimulation and tissue injury? - PubMed

Good luck!