First demonstration of highly specific and sensitive antibodies against dopamine

Dopamine was coupled to bovine serum albumin (BSA) with glutaraldehyde, precautions were taken in order to preserve the catechol ring. After injection of this immunogen into rabbits, anti-dopamine antibodies were obtained and tested using radioimmunochemical binding studies and adsorption to catecholamine covered sepharose beads. A good correlation was found between the results of the different test systems, allowing us to visualize dopamine specifically in glutaraldehyde-fixed rat brains.