Table 1.

Summary of the advantages and disadvantages of the methods used for NF-κB detection.

Method	Advantages	Disadvantages
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA)	High specificity and sensitivity because of antigen-antibody reaction High efficiency	High possibility of false-negative and false-positive results Expensive to prepare antibody Labor intensive Antibody stability
Luciferase Reporter Assay	Highly sensitive quantification Widely used for cell-based gene expression assays Large dynamic range of bioluminescence affords	Time consuming
Quantitative Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction	Rapid and sensitive Applicable for primary cells and frozen samples	High possibility of false-negative or false-positive results
Western Blotting	High sensitivity and specificity due to antigen-antibody reaction Has the ability to detect picogram level of proteins in a sample	High false or subjective results High cost High technical demand Requirement of a specific antibody to detect the protein of interest
Gel Electrophoresis Mobility Shift Assay (EMSA)	Simple, sensitive, and robust	Does not provide information regarding the location of nucleic acid sequences, molecular weight and identities of the protein in a protein-nucleic acid complex
Immunohistochemistry (Immunostaining)	High specificity due to antigen-antibody reaction High resolution Good signal amplification	Reaction bias Interruption bias Possibility of having a high background Species cross-reactivity
Chromatin Immunoprecipitation (ChIP)	Rapid and effective Determines interactions between DNA binding proteins, target genes and unknown DNA sequences	Not a quantitative approach Variability in crosslinking between DNA and target protein among samples Variability in crosslinking with antibody immunoprecipitation