The size of the fibre populations in rabbit skeletal muscles as revealed by indirect immunofluorescence with anti-myosin sera

Summary Antibodies against myosin of the fast long. dorsi and the slow soleus muscle of rabbits were induced in guinea pigs. With the aid of a new technique, the gel-electrophoresis-derived-enzyme-linked-immunosorbent assay (GEDELISA) it could be shown that they are directed against the heavy and the light chains of fast (M. long. dorsi) and slow (M. soleus) myosin. In the indirect immunofluorescence test each antiserum only stained one population of fibres in five different muscles tested. The single fibres were observed to react only with one of the two types of antisera. The following percentage of fibres showed a positive reaction with the anti-fast myosin serum: M. long. dorsi, 95%; M. psoas maior, 95%, M. psoas minor, 92%; M. tibialis ant., 90%; M. soleus, 15%.Abbreviations AB antibodies - ETPase adenosintriphosphatase - Anti-LdM antiserum against LdM - Anti-SoM antiserum against SoM - BSA bovine serum albumin - CPf contaminating protein in LdM - CPs contaminating protein in SoM - EDTA ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid - ELISA enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay - FITC fluoresceinisothiocyanate - FM last myosin showing 3LC in PAGE - GEDELISA gel electrophoresis-derived enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay - HC heavy chains of myosin - LC light chains of myosin - LdM myosin preparation of longissimus dorsi muscle - MCF microcomplement fixation - PAGE polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis - PBS phosphate buffered saline (140 mM NaCl, 20 mM potassium-phosphate, pH 7.4) - SDS sodiumdodecylsulfate - SM slow myosin, showing two LC in PAGE - SoM myosin preparation of soleus muscle