HRPcontaining

HRPcontaining refers to substances, reagents, or assays that include horseradish peroxidase enzyme. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) is a heme-containing enzyme derived from the horseradish plant and is widely used as an enzymatic label in biochemical assays because it catalyzes the oxidation of substrates in the presence of hydrogen peroxide, producing detectable color, chemiluminescence, or fluorescence.

Common HRP-containing materials include enzyme-conjugated antibodies, streptavidin-HRP, and HRP-labeled nucleic acid probes. In immunoassays such as ELISA and in immunohistochemistry, HRP conjugates enable visualization of antigen-antibody interactions. Substrates such as diaminobenzidine (DAB) and tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) are oxidized by HRP in the presence of hydrogen peroxide to yield colored products that can be measured or observed under a microscope.

Preparation and handling typically involve lyophilized or stabilized liquid formulations that require storage at appropriate temperatures (often 4°C for short-term use, with longer-term storage at -20°C or -80°C depending on formulation) and protection from light. Reagents should be aliquoted to minimize freeze-thaw cycles and handled with standard laboratory safety practices; hydrogen peroxide used in reactions is reactive and corrosive.

Limitations include loss of activity due to improper storage or heating, potential background signal from nonspecific binding, and interference from inhibitory substances in samples. Alternatives to HRP-based detection include alkaline phosphatase, fluorescence, or chemiluminescent labels.

HRP-containing reagents are central to many diagnostic and research applications, providing a versatile signal generation mechanism when properly stored and validated.