Khoudi H, Laberge S, Ferullo JM, Bazin R, Darveau A, Castonguay Y, Allard G, Lemieux R, Vézina LP. Production of a diagnostic monoclonal antibody in perennial alfalfa plants.
Biotechnol Bioeng 1999;
64:135-43. [PMID:
10397849 DOI:
10.1002/(sici)1097-0290(19990720)64:2<135::aid-bit2>3.0.co;2-q]
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Abstract
The increasing use of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) in diagnostic reagents necessitates efficient and cost-effective mAb production methods. In blood banks, one of the most routinely used reagents is the anti-human IgG reagent used for the detection of non-agglutinating antibodies. Here we report the production of a functional, purified anti-human IgG, through the expression of its encoding genes in perennial transgenic alfalfa. Transgenic plants expressing the light- and heavy-chain encoding mRNAs were obtained, and plants from crosses were found to express fully assembled C5-1. The purification procedure yielded mainly the H2L2 form with specificity and affinity identical to those of hybridoma-derived C5-1. The ability to accumulate the antibody was maintained both in parental F1 lines during repeated harvesting and in clonal material; the antibody was stable in the drying hay as in extracts made in pure water. Also, plant and hybridoma-derived C5-1 had similar in vivo half-lives in mice. These results indicate that plant C5-1 could be used in a diagnostic reagent as effectively as hybridoma-derived C5-1, and demonstrates the usefulness of perennial systems for the cost-effective, stable, and reliable production of large amounts of mAbs.
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