Human monoclonal antibodies against Mycobacterium leprae

Abstract

Human hybridomas were constructed which produce antibodies against 3 different extracts of Mycobacterium leprae. A thioguanine-resistant (Thg(r)), ouabain-resistant (Oua(r)), human lymphoblastoid cell line, KR-4, was hybridized with Epstein-Barr virus-transformed cell lines from lepromatous leprosy patients with fusion frequencies of > 10-5. Non-Epstein-Barr virus-transformed donor cells fused at much lower rates (< 2 x 10-7). Hybrids were selected in medium containing hypoxanthine aminopterin thymidine and 10-5 M ouabain. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to screen for antibodies against 3 crude extracts of armadillo-derived M. leprae, including (i) a soluble sonic extract preparation, (ii) sodium dodecyl sulfate extract of insoluble M. leprae, and (iii) a purified phenolic glycolipid antigen. Of a total of 2,200 final clones screened, 359 were found to secrete antibody which bound to soluble sonic extracts and the sodium dodecyl sulfate extract (6.7 and 9.6%, respectively), whereas 12.5% (21 out of 168) showed positivity to the glycolipid antigen. Four selected hybridomas also reacted with the deacylated derivative of M. leprae phenolic-glycolipid antigen. The specificity of these monoclonal antibodies was partially determined by screening on a panel of crude extracts from 4 other mycobacteria. Nine clones of 122 showed reactivity to M. leprae only. The predominant immunoglobulin was immunoglobulin M, and quantities up to 10 μg/ml were produced. Antibody production by hybrid clones was stable in more than 75% of the clones grown in continuous culture. By comparison, 10,000 Epstein-Barr virus-transformed lymphocyte clones from lepromatous leprosy patients were screened for anti-M. leprae antibody production, and all of the 42 clones that were initially positive in the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay lost their antibody-producing capabilities within 6 weeks in culture. These results suggest that a combination of Epstein-Barr virus transformation and hybridization may be an optimal method in producing human monoclonal antibodies from leprosy patients.