The far-eastern blot, or far-eastern blotting, is a technique for the analysis of

lipid Lipids are a broad group of naturally-occurring molecules which includes fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E and K), monoglycerides, diglycerides, phospholipids, and others. The functions of lipids include ...

s separated by high-performance thin layer chromatography ( HPTLC). When executing the technique, lipids are transferred from HPTLC plates to a

PVDF Polyvinylidene fluoride or polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) is a highly non-reactive thermoplastic fluoropolymer produced by the polymerization of vinylidene difluoride. PVDF is a specialty plastic used in applications requiring the highest pur ...

membrane for further analysis, for example by enzymatic or ligand binding assays and mass spectrometry. It was developed in 1994 by Taki and colleagues at the

Tokyo Medical and Dental University is a Japanese national university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1928, it was the first national school of dentistry in Japan. TMDU is one of top 9 Designated National University and selected as a Top Type university of Top G ...

, Japan.

Analysis

Cholesterol Cholesterol is any of a class of certain organic molecules called lipids. It is a sterol (or modified steroid), a type of lipid. Cholesterol is biosynthesized by all animal cells and is an essential structural component of animal cell mem ...

glycerophospholipid Glycerophospholipids or phosphoglycerides are glycerol-based phospholipids. They are the main component of biological membranes. Two major classes are known: those for bacteria and eukaryotes and a separate family for archaea. Structures The t ...

s and

sphingolipid Sphingolipids are a class of lipids containing a backbone of sphingoid bases, a set of aliphatic amino alcohols that includes sphingosine. They were discovered in brain extracts in the 1870s and were named after the mythological sphinx because ...

s are major constituents of the

cell membrane The cell membrane (also known as the plasma membrane (PM) or cytoplasmic membrane, and historically referred to as the plasmalemma) is a biological membrane that separates and protects the interior of all cells from the outside environment ( ...

and in certain cases function as

second messengers Second messengers are intracellular signaling molecules released by the cell in response to exposure to extracellular signaling molecules—the first messengers. (Intercellular signals, a non-local form or cell signaling, encompassing both first me ...

cell proliferation Cell proliferation is the process by which ''a cell grows and divides to produce two daughter cells''. Cell proliferation leads to an exponential increase in cell number and is therefore a rapid mechanism of tissue growth. Cell proliferation re ...

apoptosis Apoptosis (from grc, ἀπόπτωσις, apóptōsis, 'falling off') is a form of programmed cell death that occurs in multicellular organisms. Biochemical events lead to characteristic cell changes (morphology) and death. These changes incl ...

and

cell adhesion Cell adhesion is the process by which cells interact and attach to neighbouring cells through specialised molecules of the cell surface. This process can occur either through direct contact between cell surfaces such as cell junctions or indir ...

inflammation Inflammation (from la, wikt:en:inflammatio#Latin, inflammatio) is part of the complex biological response of body tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or Irritation, irritants, and is a protective response involving im ...

and

tumor A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tissue, and persists ...

metastasis Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spread from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, then, ...

. Far-eastern blot was established as a method for transferring lipids from an HPTLC plate to a polyvinylidene difluoride (

) membrane within a minute. Applications of this with other methods have been studied. Far-eastern blotting allows for the purification of glycosphingolipids and phospholipids, structural analysis of lipids in conjunction with direct mass spectrometry, binding studies using various ligands such as antibodies, lectins, bacterium, viruses, and toxins, and enzyme reaction on membranes. Far-eastern blot is adaptable to the analysis of lipids as well as metabolites of drugs and natural compounds from plants and environmental hormones.

Etymology

The name is a dual reference to

eastern blot The eastern blot, or eastern blotting, is a biochemical technique used to analyze protein post-translational modifications including the addition of lipids, phosphates, and glycoconjugates. It is most often used to detect carbohydrate epitopes. Thu ...

and the geographical concept of the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

(which includes Japan).

References

Molecular biology techniques Laboratory techniques {{biochem-stub