Cytoskeleton in neuroectodermally derived epithelial and muscle cells of the human iris and ciliary body.

The cytoskeleton of epithelial and muscle cells of the human iris and ciliary body was analyzed by immunohistochemistry in three morphologically normal formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded eyes and in 34 eyes containing a uveal melanoma. Both layers of the iris epithelium reacted with monoclonal antibodies (MAb) V9 and Vim 3B4 to vimentin, whereas the ciliary epithelia additionally reacted with MAb CAM 5.2, CK5, KS-B17.2, and CY-90, recognizing cytokeratins 8 and 18. The same cytokeratin MAb labeled the retinal pigment epithelium, which lacked vimentin. The muscle portion of the anterior iris epithelium, which forms the dilator muscle, as well as the sphincter and ciliary muscles, reacted with MAb DE-U-10 to desmin and 1A4 to alpha-smooth muscle actin. The dilator and ciliary muscles also reacted with V9 and Vim 3B4 to vimentin, and some dilator fibers were weakly immunopositive for cytokeratin 8 and 18 with CY-90 and CAM 5.2. The antigenic profile of iris and ciliary epithelia infiltrated by melanoma cells remained unchanged. The intraocular epithelia, which are developmentally related but differ in function, and the intraocular muscles, which differ in origin but are functionally related, have distinct cytoskeletal profiles and may provide insights into the functional significance of intermediate filament expression.     

Analysis of mammalian dynein using antibodies against a polypeptides of sea urchin sperm flagellar dynein

Two different affinity-purified polyclonal antibodies were prepared against A polypeptides of dynein 1 extracted from sea urchin sperm. These antibodies, named AD1 and AD2, reacted exclusively with the alpha and beta heavy chains of dynein 1. Using these antibodies, we analyzed their cross-reactivity with dynein of mammalian cells. Immunohistochemically, both AD1 and AD2 stained dynein-related structures such as cilia of rabbit tracheal epithelia and flagella of rat spermatozoa. Immunoblots of the proteins extracted from mammalian cilia and flagella revealed the presence of A polypeptide-like proteins which cross-reacted with AD1 and AD2. Immunoblot analysis showed that the cross-reactive proteins were localized to the 370-kDa band of rabbit cilia and the 390- and 350-kDa bands of rat sperms. The reaction patterns showed that there were some differences between the two antibodies. On ciliary protein immunoblots, AD1 recognized about half of the broad band region which reacted with AD2, and AD1 also recognized only the 350-kDa band of the flagella extract, suggesting that the antibody reveals only a beta-like polypeptide. Immunoprecipitation studies using the ciliary proteins and AD2 confirmed that the immunoreactive protein had ATPase activity. Given these results, we have characterized mammalian dyneins previously reported by other laboratories.     

Generation of monoclonal antibodies detecting specific epitopes in olfactory and respiratory epithelia

Summary Two panels of monoclonal antibodies have been generated, each panel having a distinct specificity for antigens located in the ciliary zone of either the olfactory or respiratory epithelium of rats. Tissue specificity was confirmed in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays on membrane fractions from various tissues. During ontogeny, the expression of olfactory-specific antigens preceeds that of respiratory-specific antigens; this observation correlates with differences in the genesis of the respective cilia type and confirms that different molecular entities are recognized. A spatial segregation of immunoreactivity in the chemosensory epithelium was observed for one of the olfactory-specific monoclonal antibodies; negative zones were located in the dorsal recess of the nasal cavity and on the tips of the turbinates. Olfactory-specific antibodies reacted with distinct polypeptide bands on Western blots from olfactory ciliary preparations.     

Ciliary and nervous structures in juvenile females of the annelid Dinophilus gyrociliatus (O. Schmidt, 1848) (Annelida: Polychaeta)

Ciliary and nerve structures were described in juvenile female Dinophilus gyrociliatus (O. Schmidt, 1848) after immunochemical staining with tubulin, serotonin, and FMRFamide antibodies. Anti-tubulin antibodies revealed the following external structures: two head and seven body ciliary bands, a ventral ciliary band, and head ciliary fields. Gut cilia and five pairs of protonephridia were detected inside the body. The nervous system consists of an oval headed neuropile with anterior and posterior nerves extending from it, seven longitudinal nerve cords, commissures, and circular nerves. Anti-serotonin antibodies revealed the head neuropile, neurons at the base of the ventral ciliary band, an oesophageal ring, and seven longitudinal ventral cords. Anti-FMRFamide antibodies revealed approximately ten neurons in the cerebral ganglion, five longitudinal cords, and the oesophageal and caudal-nerve rings. The presented data suggest the simplification of the nervous system structure in D. gyrociliatus, which probably reflects pedomorphosis.     

Interaction of monoclonal antibodies directed against bromodeoxyuridine with pyrimidine bases, nucleosides, and DNA

Although antibodies directed against bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) are being used in both clinical and basic research laboratories as tools to study and monitor DNA synthesis, little is known about the epitopes with which they react. Four monoclonal antibodies directed against BrdU were produced and were characterized to learn more about the epitopes on BrdU which are important for antibody recognition, to identify compounds other than BrdU which react with the antibodies and which might interfere with immunologic assays for BrdU, and to characterize the reaction of these antibodies with BrdU-containing DNA. By radioimmunoassays, the antibodies generally reacted well with 5-iododeoxyuridine, 5-fluorodeoxyuridine, and 5-nitrouracil. However, none of the antibodies reacted well with uridine--indicating that a substituent on uridine C5 was essential for antibody reactivity--or with 5-bromo- or iodo-cytosine, indicating that the region around pyrimidine C4 is important for antibody recognition. Although the antibodies reacted with 5-halogen-substituted uracil bases, the antibodies reacted much better with the corresponding halogenated nucleosides, indicating that the sugar moiety was important for recognition. The presence of a triphosphate group on C'5 of BrdU (i.e., BrdUTP) did not detectably alter antibody recognition. Three of the antibodies reacted only with purified DNA containing BrdU, whereas one antibody, which exhibited a weak interaction with thymidine, also reacted with BrdU-free DNA. S1 nuclease treatment of purified DNA suggested that all four monoclonal antibodies reacted exclusively with single-stranded regions of BrdU-containing DNA. Comparison of detecting DNA synthesis by [3H]TdR incorporation followed by autoradiography with that by BrdU incorporation followed by indirect immunofluorescence indicated that the latter technique was both an accurate and a sensitive measure of DNA synthesis.     

Head sensory organs of Dactylopodola baltica (Macrodasyida, Gastrotricha): a combination of transmission electron microscopical and immunocytochemical techniques

The anterior and posterior head sensory organs of Dactylopodola baltica (Macrodasyida, Gastrotricha) were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In addition, whole individuals were labeled with phalloidin to mark F-actin and with anti-alpha-tubulin antibodies to mark microtubuli and studied with confocal laser scanning microscopy. Immunocytochemistry reveals that the large number of ciliary processes in the anterior head sensory organ contain F-actin; no signal could be detected for alpha-tubulin. Labeling with anti-alpha-tubulin antibodies revealed that the anterior and posterior head sensory organs are innervated by a common stem of nerves from the lateral nerve cords just anterior of the dorsal brain commissure. TEM studies showed that the anterior head sensory organ is composed of one sheath cell and one sensory cell with a single branching cilium that possesses a basal inflated part and regularly arranged ciliary processes. Each ciliary process contains one central microtubule. The posterior head sensory organ consists of at least one pigmented sheath cell and several probably monociliary sensory cells. Each cilium branches into irregularly arranged ciliary processes. These characters are assumed to belong to the ground pattern of the Gastrotricha.     

Immunohistochemical localization of 2-Cys peroxiredoxins in human ciliary body

2-Cys peroxiredoxins (PRDX) are novel antioxidant enzymes that eliminate the hydrogen peroxide in cells to protect the cellular components from reactive oxygen species. To evaluate whether 2-Cys PRDX family plays a role in human ciliary body, the expression of PRDX I, II and III on normal human ciliary body was investigated. Three normal human ciliary body tissues obtained from three donor eyeballs were examined by an immunohistochemistry using light microscopy and fluorescent microscopy with antibodies directed against the PRDX I, II and III. In the normal human ciliary body, PRDX I, II and III were immunolocalized to the non-pigmented epithelial cells and ciliary muscle fibers. It suggests that 2-Cys PRDXs may have physiological functions to protect cells in human ciliary body.     

A study of anti-group A streptococcal monoclonal antibodies cross-reactive with myosin

Anti-group A streptococcal monoclonal antibodies were obtained from BALB c/BYJ mice immunized with purified membranes from M type 5 Streptococcus pyogenes. Two of the anti-streptococcal monoclonal antibodies were previously shown to cross-react with muscle myosin. In this study the monoclonal antibodies were reacted with tissue sections of normal human heart and skeletal muscle. Antibody binding was estimated by indirect immunofluorescence and immunoperoxidase techniques. Both of the monoclonal antibodies (36.2.2 and 54.2.8) investigated in this report reacted with heart and/or skeletal muscle sections. When evaluated by immunofluorescence, monoclonal antibody 54.2.8 demarcated the periphery of cardiac striated muscle cells and reacted to a lesser degree with subsarcolemmal components. Monoclonal antibody 36.2.2 failed to react with heart sections, but both of the monoclonal antibodies reacted strongly with skeletal muscle sections. Results similar to those observed with indirect immunofluorescence were obtained with the immunoperoxidase technique. By Western immunoblotting and competitive inhibition assays, monoclonal antibodies 36.2.2 and 54.2.8 both were found to react with the heavy chain of skeletal muscle myosin. However, only 54.2.8 reacted with the heavy chain of cardiac myosin. The specificity of the monoclonal antibodies for subfragments of skeletal muscle myosin indicated that monoclonal antibody 36.2.2 was specific for light meromyosin fragments, whereas 54.2.8 reacted with both heavy and light meromyosin. The data demonstrated that two monoclonal antibodies against streptococci were specific for skeletal muscle and/or cardiac myosin and for subfragments of the myosin molecule. The reactions of the monoclonal antibodies with human tissue sections were consistent with the immunochemical reactions of the monoclonal antibodies with both denatured and native myosin.     

Ultrastructural localization of microtubule-associated proteins (MAP) 1 in cilia of the respiratory tract

The presence and localization of high molecular weight microtubule-associated proteins of the MAP 1 class in ciliated cells of porcine and rat respiratory tract was studied by immunoblotting and immunoelectron microscopy. Ciliary shafts of the porcine tracheal epithelium were isolated using a method that minimizes contamination of the preparation by other cellular fragments and fat. Immunoblotting with rabbit antibodies to bulk MAP 1 from hog brain clearly revealed the presence of anti-MAP 1-immunoreactive high molecular weight proteins of the MAP 1 size in these preparations. To localize MAP 1 proteins at the ultrastructural level, rat and porcine tracheal epithelia were embedded in LR White and subjected to immunogold electron microscopy. Anti-MAP 1-immunoreactive material was found at ciliary shafts and basal bodies, but not at basal feet or ciliary rootlets. Interestingly, the necklace region between the shaft and the basal body of the cilium was hardly reactive with anti-MAP 1 antibodies. This may indicate a reduced stability of ciliary microtubules in this region and could be an explanation why ciliary shafts in general break more easily there than elsewhere.     

Immunohistochemical heterogeneity of alpha-tubulin in human epithelia revealed with monoclonal antibodies

Summary Four monoclonal antibodies raised to alpha subunit of pig brain tubulin (TU-01, TU-02, TU-03, TU-04) were used to study immunohistochemical heterogeneity of alpha tubulin in human epithelia. Selective reactivity was detected in the skin and trachea/bronchi, whereas all other epithelia investigated reacted uniformly with all four monoclonal antibodies. In the skin TU-01 reacted very strongly with all layers except the basal layer; TU-02 reacted strongly with granular layer and was unreactive or only weakly reactive with others; TU-03 reacted very strongly with basal layer and weakly to moderately with superficial layers; TU-04 reacted strongly with the granular layer of epidermis and was unreactive with other layers. In the trachea and major bronchi TU-01 reacted with the entire epithelial layer; TU-02 reacted only with superficial layer; TU-03 reacted with superficial and basal layer; TU-04 reacted only with superficial layer. Different staining patterns obtained with these four monoclonal antibodies indicate that there is immunohistochemical heterogeneity of alpha tubulin in some but not all normal human epithelia.     

Biochemical studies of the excitable membrane of paramecium tetraurelia. IX. Antibodies against ciliary membrane proteins

The excitable ciliary membrane of Paramecium regulates the direction of the ciliary beat, and thereby the swimming behavior of this organism. One approach to the problem of identifying the molecular components of the excitable membrane is to use antibodies as probes of function. We produced rabbit antisera against isolated ciliary membranes and against partially purified immobilization antigens derived from three serotypes (A, B, and H), and used these antisera as reagents to explore the role of specific membrane proteins in the immobilization reaction and in behavior. The immobilization characteristics and serotype cross- reactivities of the antisera were examined. We identified the antigens recognized by these sera using immunodiffusion and immunoprecipitation with 35S-labeled ciliary membranes. The major antigen recognized in homologous combinations of antigen-antiserum is the immobilization antigen (i-antigen), approximately 250,000 mol wt. Several secondary antigens, including a family of polypeptides of 42,000-45,000 mol wt, are common to the membranes of serotypes A, B, and H, and antibodies against these secondary antigens can apparently immobilize cells. This characterization of antiserum specificity has provided the basis for our studies on the effects of the antibodies on electrophysiological properties of cells and electron microscopic localization studies, which are reported in the accompanying paper. We have also used these antibodies to study the mechanism of cell immobilization by antibodies against the i-antigen. Monovalent fragments (Fab) against purified i- antigens bound to, but did not immobilize, living cells. Subsequent addition of goat anti-Fab antibodies caused immediate immobilization, presumably by cross-linking Fab fragments already bound to the surface. We conclude that antigen-antibody interaction per se is not sufficient for immobilization, and that antibody bivalency, which allows antigen cross-linking, is essential.     

Immunohistochemical heterogeneity of alpha-tubulin in human epithelia revealed with monoclonal antibodies

Four monoclonal antibodies raised to alpha subunit of pig brain tubulin (TU-01, TU-02, TU-03, TU-04) were used to study immunohistochemical heterogeneity of alpha tubulin in human epithelia. Selective reactivity was detected in the skin and trachea/bronchi, whereas all other epithelia investigated reacted uniformly with all four monoclonal antibodies. In the skin TU-01 reacted very strongly with all layers except the basal layer; TU-02 reacted strongly with granular layer and was unreactive or only weakly reactive with others; TU-03 reacted very strongly with basal layer and weakly to moderately with superficial layers; TU-04 reacted strongly with the granular layer of epidermis and was unreactive with other layers. In the trachea and major bronchi TU-01 reacted with the entire epithelial layer; TU-02 reacted only with superficial layer; TU-03 reacted with superficial and basal layer; TU-04 reacted only with superficial layer. Different staining patterns obtained with these four monoclonal antibodies indicate that there is immunohistochemical heterogeneity of alpha tubulin in some but not all normal human epithelia.     

Distinct antigenic characteristics of murine parietal yolk sac laminin

Two monoclonal antibodies (LAM-A and LAM-B) specific for laminin from normal and neoplastic parietal yolk sac (PYS) cells were produced in rats immunized with a mouse yolk sac carcinoma cell line. Both antibodies immunoprecipitated the 400,000- and 200,000-Da chains of laminin and reacted with purified PYS laminin in ELISA. LAM-A reacted with mouse and rat PYS laminin, whereas LAM-B reacted only with mouse PYS laminin. Formaldehyde- and methanol-fixed adult and fetal somatic tissues were immunohistochemically unreactive with either of the two antibodies. In acetone-fixed tissue sections, both antibodies reacted weakly with some medullary tubules of the kidney, the follicular basement membrane of the ovaries, and the seminiferous tubules. The antibodies appear to react with the polypeptide determinants residing on the terminal portion of the long arm of laminin. It is concluded that laminin derived from normal or malignant PYS cells has distinct antigenic sites that are immunochemically not apparent in most other basement membranes.     

The potential protective effect of immunization with outer-membrane protein I from Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Immunization of rabbits with outer membranes (OM) of Neisseria gonorrhoeae produced antibodies directed against outer-membrane proteins PI and PIII. The antibodies directed against PIII reacted equally well on Western blots with all strains tested, but antibodies directed against PI reacted only with the homologous strain. When purified PIB was used for immunization the immune response was quite different: the sera obtained reacted with both homologous and heterologous PIB types and also reacted with strains expressing PIA. Western blotting of peptides produced by sequential cleavage of PIB revealed that the antigenic determinants recognized by anti-OM sera were predominantly located in the central surface-exposed region of PIB, as is the epitope recognized by the protective anti-PIB monoclonal antibody SM24. In contrast antibodies produced by immunization with purified PI reacted with antigenic determinants in the N-terminal portion of PIB. Nevertheless these determinants are accessible to immune attack on the native protein since the anti-PI sera were opsonic and were strongly bactericidal for both PIA- and PIB-expressing strains.     

Tubulin evolution: Ciliate-specific epitopes are conserved in the ciliary tubulin of metazoa

Summary In spite of their overall evolutionary conservation, the tubulins of ciliates display electrophoretic and structural particularities. We show here that antibodies raised againstParamecium andTetrahymena ciliary tubulins fail to recognize the cytoplasmic tubulins of all the metazoans tested. Immunoblotting of peptide maps of ciliate tubulins reveals that these antibodies react with one or very few ciliate-specific epitopes, in contrast to polyclonal antibodies against vertebrate tubulins, which are equivalent to autoantibodies and recognize several epitopes in both ciliate and vertebrate tubulins. Furthermore, we show that the anti-ciliate antibodies recognize ciliary and flagellar tubulins of metazoans ranging from sea urchin to mammals (with the exception of humans). The results support the conclusion that although duplication and specialization of tubulin genes in metazoans may have led to distinct types of tubulins, the axonemal one has remained highly conserved.     

Monoclonal antibody studies of the antigenic determinants of human plasma retinol-binding protein

A battery of monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) against human retinol-binding protein (RBP) was produced to obtain useful probes for the study of the antigenic determinants of RBP. The 12 antibodies all reacted with human RBP by immunoblotting. Based on antibody cross-competition radioimmunoassays, four distinct and different groups of antibodies were identified: group I, 1A4 and 2F4; group II, 1G10, 5C5, 6F4, and 7G3; group III, 5H6, 6C7, 10G5, and 14E3; and group IV, 5H9 and 13A1. Information about the epitopes of RBP recognized by these MoAbs was obtained by testing the reactivity of each antibody with human, rabbit, and rat RBPs by immunoblotting. Group I and group IV antibodies reacted to a similar extent with human, rabbit, and rat RBPs. Group II antibodies reacted strongly with human and rabbit RBPs, but reacted very weakly with rat RBP. Group III antibodies reacted strongly with human RBP, but did not react with rabbit or rat RBP. Thus, the epitopes for group I and group IV antibodies appear to be regions of the RBP molecule that are conserved across the three species, whereas group III antibodies recognized only human RBP. In a preliminary study, the reactivity of each antibody with purified cyanogen bromide fragments of RBP was tested by slot immunoblotting. None of the MoAbs reacted with any of the cyanogen bromide fragments. This study shows that MoAbs specific for at least four different regions of the RBP molecule can be produced; hence, RBP contains at least four major antigenic domains.     

Monoclonal antibodies reacting with serogroup and serovar specific epitopes on different lipopolysaccharide subunits of Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona

Monoclonal antibodies with two kinds of specificities, produced against Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona, were studied by agglutination and immunoblotting. Antibodies reacted either exclusively with serovar pomona or with all members of the Pomona serogroup, but none of the antibodies reacted with representative serovars of other serogroups. Both antibodies recognized epitopes on purified lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from serovar pomona. In immunoblotting experiments the serogroup specific antibody recognized both the major LPS bands of 21 kDa and 26 kDa whereas the serovar specific antibodies reacted only with the 26 kDa band, thus localizing serovar specificity in the 26 kDa band and serogroup specific epitopes on at least two different LPS subunits.     

Detection of avian hematopoietic cell surface antigens with monoclonal antibodies to myeloid cells : Their distribution on normal and leukemic cells of various lineages

The isolation and characterization of monoclonal antibodies reacting with cell surface antigenic determinants of normal and leukemic avian hematopoietic cells is described. The antibodies were produced by immunizing mice with normal macrophages, as well as with myeloid cells transformed with the avian acute leukemia viruses MC29, AMV and E26. Eleven antibodies were characterized for their reactivity with a variety of normal and leukemic cells of the myeloid, B- and T-lymphoid and of the erythroid cell lineage. Using several methods, they could be subdivided into five distinct types: I. Four antibodies were specific for the myeloid lineage, predominantly reacting with immature myeloid cells. II. One antibody reacted with mature and immature myeloid cells as well as with T-lymphoid cells. III. Four antibodies reacted with myeloid, erythroid and T-lymphoid cells. IV. One antibody reacted with myeloid as well as with T- and B-lymphoid cells. V. One antibody reacted with all kinds of chicken hematopoietic cells except erythrocytes. The first type of antibodies detected glycoproteins with MWs of 170 and 130 kD. The pattern of antigens precipitated varied with the different monoclonal antibodies of this group. The antibody of the fourth type precipitated a 30 kD polypeptide from extracts of myeloid and lymphoid cells. None of the other antibodies precipitated any detectable proteins.     

Common Epitopes In the Circumsporozoite Proteins of Plasmodium Berghei and Plasmodium Gallinaceum Identified By Monoclonal Antibodies to the P. Gallinaceum Circumsporozoite Protein

ABSTRACT. Monoclonal antibodies that react with the circumsporozoite protein of the avian malaria Plasmodium gallinaceum sporozoites also reacted with circumsporozoite protein of the rodent malaria Plasmodium berghei. Two types of reactivity were identified: 1) two monoclonal antibodies reacted with P. berghei sporozoite protein by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, Western blot and indirect immunofluorescence antibody, 2) six other monoclonal antibodies reacted with P. berghei sporozoites by ELISA and Western blot only. We studied whether these differences could be explained by reactivity in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with different P. berghei circumsporozoite peptides. Although all P. gallinaceum monoclonal antibodies reacted with the P. berghei repeats, the first group reacted with a conserved peptide sequence, N1, whereas the second group did not. These results suggest that circumsporozoite proteins from P. gallinaceum and P. berghei share common epitopes. the biological significance of our finding is not yet clear. Indeed, the cross-reactive monoclonal antibodies giving a positive indirect immunofluorescence antibody with the P. berghei sporozoites only caused a borderline effect on the living P. berghei parasites in vitro as measured by inhibition of sporozoite infectivity.     

Monoclonal antibodies reacting with serogroup and serovar specific epitopes on different lipopolysaccharide subunits of Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona

Abstract Monoclonal antibodies with two kinds of specificities, produced against Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona , were studied by agglutination and immunoblotting. Antibodies reacted either exclusively with serovar pomona or with all members of the Pomona serogroup, but none of the antibodies reacted with representative serovars of other serogroups. Both antibodies recognized epitopes on purified lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from serovar pomona . In immunoblotting experiments the serogroup specific antibody recognized both the major LPS bands of 21 kDa and 26 kDa whereas the serovar specific antibodies reacted only with the 26 kDa band, thus localizing serovar specificity in the 26 kDa band and serogroup specific epitopes on at least two different LPS subunits.