The Use of Immunofluorescence Microscopy and Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assayas Complementary Techniques for Protein Identification in Artists' Materials

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

Antibody-based immunological approaches to identifying protein-based materials offer several advantages over traditional methods of analyzing works of art. These techniques are able to easily distinguish different protein types (e.g., collagen vs. ovalbumin vs. casein), and also to determine unambiguously the biological source of the protein (e.g., bovine collagen vs. rabbit collagen vs. sheep collagen). The technique of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay is highly sensitive, with detection limits below one nanogram, and is relatively simple and cost-effective. In addition, immunofluorescence microscopy offers the possibility of spatially resolving target proteins in embedded cross sections. This paper presents a case study in which these complementary methods were successfullyemployed for the identification of egg albumin in the analysis of an important 17th-century French cabinet by André-Charles Boulle in the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum. The authors suggest that enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and immunofluorescence microscopy have the potential to become routine analytical tools in conservation science laboratories.