Thermodynamic investigation of monoclonal antibody alkylated nucleoside interaction as a model for epitope recognition on nucleic acids

Fine specificity of antibodies against phospholipids and beta-2-glycoprotein I in monoclonal gammopathy associated neuropathies

Phospholipids are abundantly represented within the nervous system. Aim of our study was to evaluate the presence and fine specificity of anti phospholipid antibodies (aPLAb) among patients with monoclonal gammopathy associated neuropathy. Thirty nine percent of these patients had high titers of aPLAb, mostly associated with low levels of anti beta2 glycoprotein I, which suggests different antibody specificity compared to patients with anti phospholipid syndrome. Further 6/48 patients with dysimmune neuropathy without monoclonal gammopathy had positive aPLAb titers. APLAb strongly cross-reacted with sulfatide. These findings suggest an adjuntive role of aPLAb on nerve damage and may help to better understand the nerve binding properties of anti-sulfatide antibodies.

Epitopic discrimination by monoclonal antibodies directed against the same alkylated nucleoside

Epitopic specificity of three monoclonal antibodies (mAb's) (coded as ER-6, ER-3, and EM-1) was examined through the utilization of haptenic structural analogs. The binding affinity expressed by the microscopic equilibrium constant (Ki) (Yuhasz, et al., Biochemistry 26, 2334-2342 (1987] of the immunizing hapten, O6-ethyl-2'-deoxy-guanosine (*G) and eight structural analogs, were analyzed by a nitrocellulose affinity filter assay (NAFA) and radioimmunoassay (RIA) for each mAb to determine the protein-hapten interaction between the epitope and the binding cavity. Several components of the *G hapten were determined to be critical for each mAb recognition, while all three mAb's were found to require the O6-ethyl moiety, conjugated guanine base ring, the glycosyl bond and the sugar ring C [1'] and C [2'] position. This investigation further probes and categorizes the binding specificity of the monoclonal antibodies after incorporation of the *G monomer into three short deoxyribooligomeric haptens: O6-ethyl-2'-deoxyguanylyl 3',5' deoxyadenosine (*GA), 2'-deoxyadenylyl 3',5' O6-ethyl-2'-deoxyguanylyl 3',5' 2'-deoxyadenosine (A*GA), and O6-ethyl-2'-deoxyguanylyl 3',5' 2'-deoxyadenylyl 3',5'-2'-deoxyadenylyl 3',5' 2'-deoxycytosine (*GAAC). Unlike the similar binding profiles for the monoclonal antibodies and the haptenic structural analogs, the binding profiles for the deoxyribooligomeric haptens were found to differ in their modes of recognition. These results will be compared to ascertain the key components of monomer and oligomer interaction of the binding cavity. It is important for investigations where monoclonal antibodies derived from small haptens are utilized in recognition of larger antigens containing those haptens.