Glutaraldehyde fixation of the primary antibody-antigen complex on nitrocellulose paper increases the overall sensitivity of immunoblot assay

A simple method to increase the overall sensitivity of immunoblot assays is described. The method is based on fixation of the primary monoclonal antibody-antigen complex on nitrocellulose paper by a divalent crosslinker, glutaraldehyde. The fixation of the antibody-antigen complex significantly increases the sensitivity of the assay. Unexpectedly, the glutaraldehyde treatment also improves the signal/noise ratio by decreasing non-specific binding of secondary antibodies and/or tertiary reagents. Thus, a significant overall improvement of immunoblot assays is achieved by this method.

The effects of gamma interferon on the natural killer and tumor cells of children with neuroblastoma. A preliminary report

Human neuroblastoma cells lack HLA-A,-B,-C molecules which can be induced in vitro by gamma interferon (gamma IFN). To test the hypothesis that the same induction would occur in vivo leading to tumor regression, a Phase I study was initiated. Seven patients with neuroblastoma were entered on a Phase I study of recombinant gamma IFN in children. Three received 0.05 mg/m2 intravenously (IV) three times a week, three received 0.1 mg/m2 for 4 weeks, and one patient withdrew from study before receiving adequate treatment for evaluation. No significant clinical response was seen. The side effects were fever and chills, and no serious toxicity occurred. Natural killer (NK) and lymphocyte activated killer (LAK) precursor activity of peripheral blood mononuclear cells was determined before and during treatment, and expression of HLA-A,B,C molecules was looked for on the tumor cells in the bone marrow of five patients. The NK activity initially low, reached control levels in six patients, but the increase was transient. The LAK precursor activity remained normal. Expression of HLA-A,B,C, initially absent, was induced on the neuroblastoma cells in four of six patients.

The human L-myc gene is expressed as two forms of protein in small cell lung carcinoma cell lines: detection by monoclonal antibodies specific to two myc homology box sequences

The L-myc gene is the third member of the myc family of proto-oncogenes. Amplification and elevated expression of the L-myc gene has been detected in a subset of small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) cell lines. The biological properties and functions of the L-myc gene and its product have not yet been elucidated. Monoclonal antibodies against two myc homology boxes were used to characterize the L-myc gene product. These antibodies react with two groups of polypeptides of apparent masses of 60, 61 and 66 kd (the long forms), and 34 and 37 kd (the short forms) in SCLC cells expressing L-myc transcripts. The long form L-myc proteins are associated with the nuclear fraction of the cells. The short form L-myc proteins are present in the cytoplasmic fraction, though diffusion of the short forms from the nucleus during cell fractionation cannot be ruled out. The half-life of the long form polypeptides is approximately 45-90 min. The short form polypeptides have a half-life of approximately 120-180 min. The L-myc protein is not detectable in the mitotic cells, suggesting that the L-myc protein expression is tightly regulated during the cell cycle.

Expression of HLA-DR mRNA in T cells following activation is early and can precede DNA synthesis

The stimulation of T cells is accompanied by the appearance of a number of activation antigens not found on resting T cells. We have studied the expression of one group of such antigens, the HLA class II antigens (DR, DQ and DP), following stimulation with PHA and PMA. Immunofluorescence studies using monoclonal antibodies indicated that cell surface class II determinants were detectable as little as 30 minutes following stimulation, and that their levels remained constant for about 24 hours, after which they began to increase. Studies on the molecule level demonstrated an increase in the steady state levels of mRNA for DR beta by 15 minutes. Immunoblot analysis of resting T cell lysates using a monoclonal antibody reactive with DR detected a polypeptide of approximately 28 KDa, which agrees with the known molecular mass of the light chain of class II molecules on SDS-PAGE, suggesting that the rapid surface expression might have been due to the presence of pre-formed class II polypeptides. These results demonstrate 1) that T cells defined as resting by conventional criteria contain class II polypeptides and 2) that increases in steady state levels of class II mRNA is a very early event which precedes the initiation of DNA synthesis.

Identification and characterization of the NMYC gene product in human neuroblastoma cells by monoclonal antibodies with defined specificities

Increased N-myc (now designated NMYC in human gene nomenclature) gene expression has been detected at the transcriptional level in certain types of neoplasms. As yet, the N-myc gene product has not been identified. To detect and characterize the N-myc gene product, we have developed monoclonal antibodies against the putative N-myc gene product made in Escherichia coli as a fusion protein. The antibodies that recognize the N-myc-specific regions were selected on the basis of their reactivities to different portions of the fusion protein. These monoclonal antibodies detect a pair of closely migrating polypeptides of 60 and 63 kDa in nuclear fractions of human neuroblastoma cells. The relative levels of the polypeptides are roughly proportional to the level of N-myc transcripts present in a panel of neuroblastoma lines. These two polypeptides have a half-life of approximately equal to 35 min, and they are indistinguishable from each other by their epitopic profiles.

Purification and characterization of hemoglobin-hydrolyzing acidic thiol protease induced by leupeptin in rat liver

Intraperitoneal administration of leupeptin to rats induced a hemoglobin-hydrolyzing protease which was most active at pH 3.5 and was insensitive to pepstatin in various tissues such as the liver, kidney, and muscle, as observed previously in adult rat hepatocytes in primary culture (Tanaka, K., Ikegaki, N., and Ichihara, A. (1979) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 91, 102-107). The induced acidic protease was purified about 600-fold in 30% yield from rat liver by conventional chromatographic techniques. The purified enzyme appeared homogeneous by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence or absence of sodium dodecyl sulfate and was a monomeric protein of Mr = 20,000. The enzyme appeared to be a glycoprotein because its induction was blocked by the addition of tunicamycin to cultures of hepatocytes and because the induced protease was absorbed on concanavalin A-Sepharose and eluted with methylglucoside. It seemed to be present in lysosomes and was fairly stable at various pH values and temperatures. It showed endopeptidase activity on various protein substrates, but scarcely hydrolyzed N-substituted derivatives of arginine. It did not hydrolyze esters, showed no aminopeptidase or carboxypeptidase activity, and did not inactivate glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase or aldolase. The enzyme appeared to be a thiol protease, since it was strongly inhibited by sulfhydryl-reactive compounds and N-( [N-(1-3-trans-carboxyoxiran-2-carbonyl)-L-leucyl]-agmatine and was not inhibited by reagents specific for carboxyl-, serine-, or metalloproteases. This induced protease could be separated from cathepsins B, D, and H by chromatography. The enzyme was similar to cathepsin L in chromatographic behavior, Mr and pI, but differed from the latter in stability and in its inability to inactivate some enzymes. These results suggest that it differs from any known proteases found previously in rat liver.