Monitoring NK Cells Activation with the Help of Monensin

I use monensin to follow the activation of NK cells when incubated with target cells. I add an anti-CD107a antibody at the beginning of the incubation, and then after 1h of incubation, I add monensin at 1/1000. It prevents the acidification of endocytic vesicles, protecting the reinternalized CD107a from degradation. This marker can then be detected by flow cytometry.

It works perfectly for my experiment. Before using monensin, I couldn't see any difference in terms of NK cells activation. Now, the anti-CD107a signal is restored thanks to the monensin.