About CD42b
Glycoprotein Ib (GP Ib) is a platelet surface membrane glycoprotein composed of a heterodimer, an alpha chain and a beta chain, that is linked by disulfide bonds. The Gp Ib functions as a receptor for von Willebrand factor (VWF). The complete receptor complex includes noncovalent association of the alpha and beta subunits with platelet glycoprotein IX and platelet glycoprotein V. The binding of the GP Ib-IX-V complex to VWF facilitates initial platelet adhesion to vascular subendothelium after vascular injury, and also initiates signaling events within the platelet that lead to enhanced platelet activation, thrombosis, and hemostasis. This gene encodes the alpha subunit. Mutations in this gene result in Bernard-Soulier syndromes and platelet-type von Willebrand disease. The coding region of this gene is known to contain a polymophic variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) domain that is associated with susceptibility to nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy. [provided by RefSeq, Oct 2013]

About Brilliant Violet 421
Brilliant™ Violet 421 (BV421) is a Violet-emitting non-tandem polymer fluorophore that can be excited by the 405 nm Violet laser and collected using a 450/50 bandpass filter. BV421 has an excitation peak at 405 nm and an emission peak at 421 nm, and is spectrally similar to Alexa Fluor™ 405 and Cascade Blue. Other dyes that are considered similar include SuperNova V428 (Beckman Coulter), StarBright Violet 440 (Bio-Rad) and SuperBright 436 (Thermo Fisher). BV421 is very bright and is most commonly used for flow cytometry. Its photostablity, fixation stablity, and non-toxicity properties also make BV421 useful for cell sorting and live cell Fluorescence Microscopy applications. This dye is part of the Brilliant™ Violet dye line of fluorescent polymers. Brilliant™ Violet 421 polymer is employed as the donor molecule in a series of tandem dyes with acceptor molecules emitting at various points across the visible light spectrum. The Brilliant™ Violet dyes are a superior alternative to QDot nanocrystals and similar to SuperNova dye from Beckman Coulter and StarBright dyes from Bio-Rad.