Arbor Assays

Your Guide to Arbor Assays Research Resources 

Starting a new experiment often comes with a flood of questions: How do I prepare saliva for cortisol measurement? What’s the best way to extract hormones from fecal samples? Which protocols work for hair or tissue culture media? We know how important clear, reliable answers are when you’re setting up an assay, whether it’s your first time in the lab or your fourth decade as a scientist. That’s why we’ve built a library of complementary research resources designed to support your science every step of the way. From validated extraction protocols and plate washing tips to peer-reviewed publications, FAQs, and scientist-led videos, you’ll find everything you need to plan, run, and troubleshoot your assays with confidence. 

1. The Resource Hub 

Every good experiment starts with the proper preparation. That’s why we built the Resource  Hub, a collection of practical guides and demonstrations designed to support you at every step of your assay. 

Extraction and Preparation Protocols 

You’ll find extraction and preparation methods for a wide range of sample types, making it easy to locate what you need: 

  • Noninvasive samples: fecal material, urine, saliva, hair, feathers, and nails. 
  • Circulating samples: serum and plasma, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). 
  • Tissue-based samples: whole tissue homogenates and tissue culture media (TCM). 

Each protocol guides you through validated steps that have been successfully used in published research, ensuring consistency across different studies and species. 

Plate Washing Guidance 

Washing is one of the most critical steps in an ELISA, yet it’s often overlooked. Our instructions cover both manual and automated plate washers, providing clear directions to minimize variability and ensure the reliability of your data. 

Video Demonstrations 

It helps to see a protocol in action. That’s why we’ve created short video demonstrations that show each step from start to finish. These are especially useful if you’re new to the lab or if you want to share visual training materials with your team. 

The Resource Hub is the best place to begin when you’re setting up a new assay. From sample preparation to washing techniques, you’ll have precise, ready-to-use instructions right at your fingertips. 

2. Explore Ideas in Our Blog and News 

Once you have the basics down, it’s useful to see how other researchers are applying similar tools. Our Blog and News section is where we highlight studies, share research trends, and mark scientific milestones throughout the year. 

The blog is filled with stories that bring biomarkers to life, from stress hormones in honey bees during National Honey Month, to testosterone measurement in white-tailed deer, to oxytocin research in children working with therapy dogs. Each post connects a specific Arbor Assays kit to real-world research, demonstrating how scientists utilize these tools in innovative and meaningful ways, validating new samples and species along the way. 

For students and new investigators, the blog can be a springboard for ideas: 

  • Thinking about measuring cortisol in a noninvasive way? Read how others used hair or fecal samples to monitor stress. 
  • Interested in reproductive biology? Explore posts featuring estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone assays across species. 
  • Curious about broader applications? Learn how biomarkers tie together into the big picture research of thrombosis. 

Because the blog evolves with current science, it’s a great way to stay connected with new findings, applications, and even seasonal research themes. 

3. Dig Deeper with Our Publication Database 

When you’re designing an experiment, it helps to see how other scientists have approached similar questions. Our Publication Database makes this easy. It contains hundreds of peer-reviewed papers in which Arbor Assays kits have been used across various species, sample types, and research areas. 

The database is searchable. You can look up a specific kit, a sample type of interest, or even a species. For example, you might select “claws” under sample type and find studies measuring stress and reproductive hormones in martens, wolves, and sea lions. A quick search for “Estradiol ELISA Kit” under product brings up reproductive studies in both clinical research and conservation settings. 

Use our database as your resource to: 

  • Discover experimental designs that could inspire your own approach. 
  • See which sample types and extraction methods have been validated in the literature. 
  • Find citable sources for your own manuscript or presentation. 

And because the database is updated continuously, it grows right alongside the research community. 

4. Quick Answers in Our FAQs 

Even with good protocols and published studies at hand, questions still arise in the lab. Our Frequently Asked Questions page gathers together the answers we provide most often, so you can find them in one place. 

A few of the common topics include: 

  • Shipping information, such as how our kits are packaged and what to expect upon delivery. 
  • Dissociation reagent: when and why you might need to use it for specific assays. 
  • Non-validated sample types or species and guidance on running assays with samples outside the validated list, including what considerations to keep in mind. 

These are the kinds of practical questions that can save time and help you avoid surprises. If you don’t see your exact situation covered, our technical team is always ready to help with specifics. 

5. See Research in Action: Research Recap Videos 

Sometimes the best way to understand an assay’s impact is to hear directly from the people using it. Our Research Recap videos bring that experience to you in short, engaging clips. 

Each video features a scientist walking through their study: why they chose a particular biomarker, how they used one of our kits, and what the results meant for their research. You’ll find topics as varied as oxytocin levels in children working with therapy dogs or stress hormone monitoring in wildlife. 

For new researchers, these videos can spark ideas for designing a project or determining the types of samples to collect. For experienced scientists, they offer a quick look at how peers in other fields are applying similar assays.  

Arbor Assays is Here to Support Your Science 

Designing a successful experiment is rarely about one resource, rather it’s about knowing where to turn at each step. On our site, you can move seamlessly from Protocols to inspiration in the Blog, to peer-reviewed validation in the Publication Database. If questions come up, the FAQs and our technical support team are available to assist, and the Research Recap videos offer insight into how other scientists have put these tools to work. 

All of these resources are here to help you spend less time worrying about logistics and more time focusing on your science.  

Explore our Resources Hub, and let your research thrive. 

One final pro tip: Already know which kit you’d like to use? Check out the product page for key documents like the Product Protocol Kit Insert and Product SDS, and plan your experimental workflow before your kits arrive!