Introduction to Bioconjugation

This chapter provides an extensive introduction to the vast field of bioconjugation. It begins by reviewing the fundamental principles of bioconjugation including the major types of conjugates and their components, then discusses the best strategies and designs for making an optimal conjugate, and finally examines the major application areas of how bioconjugates are being used today. The chapter divides the field of bioconjugation into logical application areas consisting of Assay and Quantification; Detection, Tracking, and Imaging; Purification, Capture, and Scavenging; Catalysis and Chemical Modification, Therapeutics and In Vivo Diagnostics; and Vaccines and Immune Modulation. Each of these areas represents significant fields for using bioconjugates that could literally encompass entire books in their own right. The purpose of this introduction is to explore and understand the broad variety of bioconjugate designs that have been used for an enormous number of applications in virtually every field of science. Such examples then can be combined with the information throughout the rest of the book to form the basis for designing new bioconjugates for as-yet undiscovered bioconjugate applications.