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In a search for H- or L-chain-related cross-idiotypic specificity among human anti-I and anti-i cold agglutinins, two idiotypic antisera raised against the IgMkappa cold agglutinin Da were tested for their binding activity to isolated cold agglutinin H and L chains. Negligible H-chain binding activity was found, but there was high-titre L-chain binding activity in one of the antisera. This was an unsuspected VkappaIII subgroup activity which enabled the classification of VkappaIII proteins into three subgroups. The kappa chains of five out of six anti-I and anti-i cold agglutinins belonged to the antigenically most active VkappaIII subgroup. Absorption of the idiotypic antiserum with a Bence Jones protein of this latter subgroup did not appreciably alter the precipitating cross-idiotypic activity of the antiserum when tested with intect cold agglutinins. However, these studies do not rule out the possible existence of a VkappaIII subgroup-associated conformational antigen in an intact Fab region, which is seen as a 'cross idiotypic' antigen by heterologous (rabbit anti-human) antisera.

Conditions have been established for the rapid and efficient conjugation of reducing oligosaccharides (di- to deca-saccharides) to dipalmitoyl phosphatidylethanolamine. The resulting neoglycolipids derived from several naturally occurring oligosaccharides and a series of N-linked high-mannose-type oligosaccharides released by hydrazinolysis from RNAase B showed specific and potent reactivities, as appropriate, with monoclonal antibodies to blood group Lewis(b), blood group A or a stage-specific embryonic (SSEA-1) antigen, or the lectin concanavalin A.

1. The behaviour of several carbonyl group reagents and urea as time-dependent inhibitors of both pig kidney and human placental diamine oxidase is described. 2. Plots of log (vt/vo) against time were not linear with these reagents as the usual theories predict. 3. This was particularly the case with aminoguanidine and phenylhydrazine and a thorough study of the effects of these compounds on the human placental diamine oxidase is described. 4. By applying a new theory for time-dependent inhibition, the inhibition of diamine oxidase by aminoguanidine and phenylhydrazine is adequately accounted for. 5. The time-dependent recovery of activity on addition of sodium pyruvate suggested that the compounds used are acting solely as carbonyl group reagents, inhibiting by Schiff-base formation at the active-site carbonyl group.

Human monoclonal anti-I and anti-i antibodies, reactive with known carbohydrate sequences, have been used as reagents to quantitate (by radioimmunoassay) and visualize (by immunofluorescence) the expression of the various blood group I and i antigenic determinants in a variety of cultured cell lines commonly used in laboratory investigations. It has been shown that the antigens they recognize are widely distributed on the surface of human and animal cell lines, expressed in varying amounts in different cell lines and on individual cells within a given cell line. In two cell lines, a transformation-associated increase in the expression of I antigen was observed. Because of their precise specificity for defined carbohydrate chain domains, these autoantibodies have become valuable reagents in biological chemistry.

A monoclonal antibody (NIBy 142-36/8) raised against the soluble galactose-binding lectin of bovine heart muscle has been tested by solid-phase vinyl-plate radiobinding and nitrocellulose immunoblotting with homogenates of various bovine tissues, and the muscle tissues of pig, rabbit, chicken and rat. Muscle lectins of chicken, rabbit and rat differed from those of man and pig in their lack of reactivity with the 36/8 antibody. There was a good correlation of haemagglutinating activities and immunoreactivities of the bovine tissue homogenates, suggesting that the soluble galactose-binding protein is a major haemagglutinin in various tissues. Immunoblotting experiments revealed an array of antigenically active components in the homogenates in addition to the 13 and 26kDa proteins that were previously detected in preparations of purified lectin. These were in the range 36kDa to more than 200kDa, and a different spectrum of immunoreactive components was found in various cell types. Galactose-binding activity was demonstrable in 13, 26 and 36kDa components in certain bovine tissues, suggesting that the immunoreactive components of higher Mr may be inactive precursor forms of the lectin.

1. The inhibition of diamine oxidase has been studied by using the following copper-chelating reagents: 1,10-phenanthroline; 2,2'-bipyridyl; 8-hydroxyquinoline (oxine); diethyldithiocarbamate and dithio-oxamide (rubeanic acid). 2. Addition of chelating reagent caused a rapid inhibition of enzyme to a degree dependent solely on the final inhibitor concentration. Addition of substrate gave linear initial rates of reaction showing that under these conditions the inhibition was not being rapidly reversed. 3. The inhibition has been investigated by using new graphical methods and has been found in all cases to involve the chelating agents completely removing two Cu(2+) ions from the enzyme. An alternative possibility, involving ligand substitution, was eliminated. 4. A value of K=8.0x10(-33)m(-2) has been found for the enzyme in equilibrium with 2 Cu(2+) ions (i.e. beta(2), the stability constant for diamine oxidase/two Cu(2+), is 32.1).

Desialylated human blood group O erythrocyte glycopeptides were digested with the endo-beta-galactosidase of Bacteroides fragilis and the enzyme-released products reduced with NaBH4 and purified by Bio-Gel P-4 chromatography. Three linear and six branched oligosaccharides of poly(N-acetylllactosamine) type, which together accounted for 90% of the oligosaccharide alditols, were characterised by fast-atom-bombardment mass spectrometry and gas-liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. Linkage and composition data were obtained for the remaining material. The salient findings were (a) the branched oligosaccharide alditols each contained the sequence: (Formula: see text) and (b) there was no evidence for the terminal branch-point sequence: (Formula: see text). Together these observations indicate that, as with erythrocyte glycolipids described previously [Scudder, P., Hanfland, P., Uemura, K. & Feizi, T. (1984) J. Biol. Chem. 259, 6586-6592], the endo-beta-galactosidase of Bacteroides fragilis cannot hydrolyse branch-point beta-galactosidic linkages on erythrocyte membrane glycopeptides.

Oligosaccharide recognition by three mammalian mannose-binding proteins was investigated by using as probes a series of structurally characterized neoglycolipids in t.l.c. binding assays. The neoglycolipids were derived from N-linked oligosaccharides of complex, high-mannose and hybrid types and from human milk oligosaccharides and simple di- and tri-saccharides. The three proteins, namely the recombinant carbohydrate-recognition domain of rat mannose-binding Protein A and the multi-subunit forms of rat and human serum mannose-binding proteins, were shown to have in common reactivity with oligosaccharide probes containing one or more non-reducing terminal N-acetylglucosamine residue(s). Substitution with galactose masks reactivity. The three proteins also bound to non-reducing terminal mannose residues in high-mannose-type oligosaccharides, non-reducing terminal fucose residues in the sequence Fuc alpha 1-4(Gal beta 1-3)GlcNAc and non-reducing terminal glucose residues in dextran oligomers; the recombinant binding domain gave consistently weaker binding. The relative reactivities with the various probes differ for each protein. Overall, the reaction patterns of the three mammalian proteins differ from that of the plant lectin concanavalin A, which showed preferential binding to the high-mannose type, weak binding to biantennary complex type and no binding to the fuco-oligosaccharide and simple oligosaccharide probes. As a group, the three mammalian proteins resemble bovine serum conglutinin and behave as lectins with rather broad sugar specificities directed at certain non-reducing terminal N-acetylglucosamine, mannose, glucose and fucose residues, but with subtle differences in fine specificities. These results illustrate the potential of neoglycolipids in studies of oligosaccharide recognition by natural and recombinant proteins of diverse biological systems.

Among the pathological effects in man following infection with Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a transient autoimmune disorder characterized by the presence of high-titre erythrocyte autoantibodies (cold agglutinins). These autoantibodies are usually directed against the carbohydrate antigen termed I (ref. 3) which consists of a branched oligosaccharide. The mechanism by which the anti-I antibodies are elicited is unknown. However, sialic acid-containing receptors have been implicated in the adherence of M. pneumoniae to erythrocytes and other cell types, and both I and the related antigen i occur on erythrocytes in sialylated form: i is the predominant antigen on fetal erythrocytes and I is predominant in adults. Anti-I antibodies might arise in M. pneumoniae infection in response to a modification of the 'self' antigen-I as a result of its interaction with this agent. Here we report our study of the specificity of the interaction of M. pneumoniae with human erythrocytes. We found that this interaction is mediated by long chain oligosaccharides of sialic acid joined by alpha 2-3 linkage to the terminal galactose residues of poly-N-acetyllactosamine sequences of Ii antigen type.

High molecular weight glycoproteins of human B and T lymphocytes known as leucocyte common antigen or T200 have been shown to carry O- and N-glycosidically linked, sialylated, carbohydrate chains. The O-linked chains are polydisperse and those of B rather than T cell type are highly susceptible to degradation by endo-beta-galactosidase. These differences among lymphocytes that are functionally distinct raise the possibility that the oligosaccharides may contribute to the functions of these differentiation molecules as well as to their electrophoretic diversity.

Affinity chromatography of radioiodinated solubilized erythrocyte stroma and of radioiodinated purified Band 3 on an anti-(blood-group I)-adsorbent column showed blood-group-I activity associated with a subpopulation of Band 3. The specificity of binding was confirmed by inhibition with known blood-group substances in radioimmunoassays.

Blood group I activities of the purified glycosphingolipid lacto-N-iso-octaosyl ceramide (Fromula: see text) and 8 of its analogues have been evaluated with 11 anti-I sera including 5 anti-I sera previously tested. All but one of the antisera were inhibited by the lacto-N-iso-octaosyl structure. Three types of I-specificity could be distinguished although none of the anti-I sera was identical in its inhibition patterns with the nine glycophingolipid analogues. The anti-I sera Ma and Woj represent the first type and require an intact Galbeta1 leads to 4GlcNAcbeta1 leads to 6 chain, the anti-I sera Step, Gra, Ver, and Ful represent the second type which requires Galbeta1 leads to 4GlcNAcbeta1 leads to 3 chain with branching, and the anti-I sera Phi, Da, Sch, and Low belong to the third type which requires both branches to be intact. Anti-I antibodies varry in their ability to react with their antigenic determinants in the presence of external substitutions with alpha-linked galactose or sialic acid.

Isotopes of iodine are often employed as radiolabels for antibodies used in radioimmunodetection studies in which tumor localization is determined by external imaging. Because of drawbacks associated with the use of these isotopes, alternative labeling methods have been considered; such as covalently attaching strong chelators so that the coupled protein may be radiolabeled with metallic radionuclides by chelation. We have developed a method of coupling the strong chelator diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) which is simple, efficient, and superior to reported methods. Using the cyclic anhydride, coupling to IgG antibody is about 75% efficient and is completed in less than 1 min at neutral pH. Because the concentration of hydrolytic products is small, the coupled protein is rapidly purified for use or storage. Labeling of the protein is also accomplished rapidly and the labeled product has been shown to be stable both in vitro and in vivo.

The thin-layer-chromatography immunostaining procedure was applied to human erythrocyte glycolipids using monoclonal anti-i and anti-I antibodies which are directed against epitopes on linear and branched carbohydrate chains of the neolacto (poly-N-acetyllactosamine) series. An examination of native and mild-acid-treated glycolipids from normal adult (I(adult) antigen type), neonatal (i(cord)), and I-antigen-deficient adult (i(adult)) erythrocytes enabled certain structural inferences to be made as follows: (a) cells of both I and i phenotypes contain a multiplicity of glycolipids of the neolacto series whose backbones consist of 8 or more sugar residues; (b) the octasaccharide backbones are predominantly linear in cells of i phenotype and branched in those of I type; and (c) more complex glycolipids having decasaccharide and larger backbones with both linear and branched sequences occur in erythrocytes of both phenotypes.

The carriers of the carbohydrate differentiation antigens I, i and SSEA-1 were investigated in embryonal carcinoma cell lines of mouse and differentiated cell lines derived from them. Glycoproteins were studied by immunostaining ('Western blotting') of total cell lysates and immunoprecipitation from lysates of galactose oxidase/NaB3H4-labelled cells; glycolipids were investigated by immunostaining of thin layer chromatograms. The antigenic activities detected by immunofluorescence of cell smears were reflected in the antigenicities of high-molecular-weight glycoproteins. These were polydisperse and markedly susceptible to digestion with endo-beta-galactosidase. Only the I antigen was detected on minor glycolipids. These observations indicate that glycoproteins rather than glycolipids are the major carriers of carbohydrate differentiation antigens I, i and SSEA-1 in the teratocarcinoma cell lines.

Endogenous beta-galactoside-binding lectins were isolated from human heart and from human and rhesus-monkey skeletal muscles. Gel precipitation and radioimmunoassays with rabbit antisera to calf heart lectin revealed antigenic cross-reactions between the primate and bovine muscle lectins.

The covalent attachment of strong chelating groups such as DTPA to IgG antibodies may simplify the labeling of these proteins with 99mTc and may improve the stability of the label. Accordingly, we have investigated the labeling of DTPA-coupled antibodies by determining the effect of DTPA:tin molar ratio, pH, and DTPA concentration. We have determined that the optimum conditions are a molar ratio of 1:1.5, a pH of 4, a DTPA concentration as high as possible, and an antibody concentration as low as possible. Using these conditions, a DTPA-coupled antibody was labeled with 99mTc and its stability in 37 degrees C serum compared with that of the uncoupled antibody labeled in the identical fashion. High performance liquid chromatographic analysis of the incubates showed that the coupled antibody lost its label slowly compared to the uncoupled antibody. Both labeled antibodies were also administered to normal mice along with 111In-labeled coupled antibody as a further control. Biodistribution results obtained at 1 hr and 20 hr confirm the increased stability of the label in the case of the coupled antibody and provide evidence for redistribution of the 99mTc following catabolism at sites of localization. To obtain the above results, however, it was necessary to attach an average of two to five DTPA groups per antibody molecule. Furthermore, it was not possible to reduce to negligible levels nonspecific binding of 99mTc to the antibody.

The antigens expressed on the carbohydrate chains of the receptor for epidermal growth factor of A431 cells were studied by immunoblotting with monoclonal antibodies. Blood group A and the Type 1 based blood group ALeb and Lea antigens were detected as well as antigens associated with unsubstituted, monofucosylated and difucosylated Type 2 blood group chains. The Lea and the difucosylated Type 2 antigen activities were abolished by treating the blotted receptor with endo-beta-galactosidase, indicating that they are expressed on backbone structures of poly-lacto/neolacto type. (The term 'poly-lacto/neolacto' is used here to describe oligosaccharide backbone structures consisting of repeating Type 1, Gal beta 1-3GlcNAc (lacto) or Type 2, Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc (neolacto) sequences.) The glycosidic linkage of oligosaccharides to protein was investigated using Pronase digests of the receptor biosynthetically labelled with [3H]glucosamine or [3H]fucose. The oligosaccharides were alkali-resistant, consistent with N- rather than O-glycosidically linked chains. A proportion of [3H]fucose-labelled glycopeptides was susceptible to endo-beta-galactosidase, confirming the immunoblotting experiment using antibodies against the Lea and the difucosylated Type 2 antigenic determinants. Oligosaccharides were released from the [3H]fucose- and [3H]-glucosamine-labelled glycopeptides by hydrazinolysis. Chromatography of the oligosaccharides on Bio-Gel P6 and Concanavalin A columns indicated a spectrum of oligosaccharides which include those of high mannose type labelled with [3H]glucosamine, and a mixture of oligosaccharides labelled with [3H]fucose and [3H]glucosamine of bi- and multiantennary complex types of which a subpopulation is susceptible to digestion with endo-beta-galactosidase.

A simple and efficient method of covalently coupling the strong chelator diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid to proteins was developed for radiolabeling immunoglobulin G antibodies. After being coupled and labeled with indium-111, a monoclonal antibody to carcinoembryonic antigen retained its ability to bind to its antigen in vitro and in vivo. In nude mice with a human colorectal xenograft, 41 percent of the injected radioactivity became localized in each gram of xenograft at 24 hours compared with 9 percent for control antibody and 19 percent for radioiodinated antibody to carcinoembryonic antigen.

Immunochemical evidence is presented for the presence of blood-group-related carbohydrate structures on human milk galactosyltransferase and for the occurrence of the corresponding specificities among rabbit antibodies to this enzyme. Although these carbohydrate specificities constitute minor populations among antisera and affinity-purified antibodies to galactosyltransferase, their presence is important in the immunohistochemical approach to enzyme localization, since they give rise to strong reactivities with epithelial cells of the gastrointestinal tract.

In earlier work, DTPA has been covalently coupled to albumin via the cyclic anhydride of DTPA. Using fibrinogen, we have studied the effect of such coupling on protein viability by both an in vitro and an in vivo assay. Clotting time remained identical to that of the native protein whether the anhydride-to-protein molar ratio was 1:1 or 5:1. In vivo studies were done in dogs, with human fibrinogen labeled with 1-125 and In-111. Throughout 130 hr, blood clearances for the two tracers agreed whether with 1:1 or 5:1 coupling. In a dog model with a thrombogenic catheter, the clot-to-blood ratios for the two radiotracers agreed within experimental error. Finally, 1:1-coupled canine fibrinogen, labeled with In-111, was administered to dogs with a catheter in a jugular vein, and scintigrams at 24 hr clearly showed clotting along the length of the catheter. We conclude that fibrinogen, coupled to DTPA, retains its viability, behaving like radioiodinated fibrinogen in vivo, and In-111 labeled fibrinogen looks promising as a clinical diagnostic agent.

This report describes the preparation of a library of oligosaccharide probes (neoglycolipids) from N-glycosylated proteins, characterization of the probes by liquid secondary ion mass spectrometry, and investigation of their reactions with 125I-labeled bovine serum conglutinin by chromatogram binding assays. The results, together with additional binding studies using neoglycolipids derived from purified complex type bi-, tri-, and tetraantennary oligosaccharides from urine, or their glycosidase-treated products, have shown that the combining specificity of conglutinin includes structures not only on high mannose-type oligosaccharides but also on hybrid- and complex-type chains. With high mannose-type oligosaccharides there is increased reactivity from the Man5 to the Man8 structures, indicating a preference for the terminal Man alpha 1-2 sequence. With complex- and hybrid-type oligosaccharides, the requirements for binding are the presence of nonreducing terminal N-acetylglucosamine or mannose residues, but the presence of a bisecting N-acetylglucosamine residue may inhibit binding. From these results it is deduced that the reactivity of conglutinin with the complement glycopeptide iC3b rather than the intact glycoprotein C3 is due to the oligosaccharide accessibility rendered by proteolysis in the complement cascade.

A new method has been developed for the coupling of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) to proteins using the cyclic anhydride of DTPA. The anhydride, prepared by a simple one-step synthesis, is added as the solid to the solid protein. Coupling is completed in minutes at room temperature following the addition of aqueous pH 7 buffer. The coupling has been characterized by the use of exhaustive dialysis, gel chromatography, and u.v. spectrophotometry. Under optimal conditions of anhydride: protein molar ratio and protein concentration, up to 70% of the DTPA groups may be coupled to protein. Essentially all free DTPA may be removed from DTPA-coupled albumin preparations by a single passage through a 20-cm gel filtration column. Biodistributions in normal mice at 45 min obtained for 111In-albumin showed 33 +/- 1% injected dose per gram in blood compared to 35 +/- 3% for 125I-albumin. Results for all tissue samples are in agreement within two standard deviations. The simplicity with which albumin has been coupled with DTPA by this method contrasts sharply with existing methods and is an attractive area of research for the labeling of a variety of proteins with a variety of metallic radionuclides.

A series of oligosaccharides derived from glycoproteins or from human milk were coupled to lipid and used as probes of the binding specificities of Escherichia coli isolated from patients with urinary tract infections. Selective binding to the glycoprotein oligosaccharide probes rich in mannose residues (high-mannose type) was demonstrated with fimbriated E coli that give mannose-inhibitable haemagglutination. This observation is in accordance with predictions from inhibition studies. Binding studies with the human milk oligosaccharide probes, which resemble structures found on host-cell membranes, revealed adhesive specificity unrelated to the presence of fimbriae. This new type of host oligosaccharide receptor is affected by the presence of the blood group genetic markers. It involves the disaccharide sequence linked to the membrane-associated lipid moiety of host-cell glycolipids, and may have a role in initiation of infection on damaged epithelial cell membranes.

More than ten new types of gangliosides, in addition to haematoside and sialosylparagloboside, were isolated from human erythrocyte membranes. These were separated by successive chromatographies on DEAE-Sephadex, on porous silica-gel columns and on thin-layer silica gel as acetylated compounds. Highly potent blood-group-Ii and moderate blood-group-H activities were demonstrated in some of the ganglioside fractions. The gangliosides incorporated into cholesterol/phosphatidylcholine liposomes stoicheiometrically inhibited binding of anti-(blood-group I and i) antibodies to a radioiodinated blood-group-Ii-active glycoprotein. The fraction with the highest blood-group-I-activity, I(g) fraction, behaved like sialosyl-deca- to -dodeca-glycosylceramides on t.l.c. Certain blood-group-I and most of the -i determinants were in partially or completely cryptic form and could be unmasked by sialidase treatment. Thus the I and i antigens, which are known to occur on internal structures of blood-group-ABH-active glycoproteins in secretions, also occur in the interior of the carbohydrate chains of erythrocyte gangliosides.

A variety of animal tissues contain beta-galactoside-binding lectins with molecular masses in the range 13-17 kDa. There is evidence that these lectins may constitute a new protein family although their function in vivo is not yet clear. In this work the major part of the amino acid sequence of the 13 kDa lectin from bovine heart muscle has been determined. Comparison of this sequence with the cDNA-deduced sequence published for the chick embryo skin lectin showed 58% homology. Comparison of the bovine lectin sequence with partial sequences from two cDNA clones from a human hepatoma library and partial amino acid sequences of human lung lectin showed 70, 40 and 85% homology, respectively. The sequences of these vertebrate lectins are thus clearly related, supporting earlier results of immunological cross-reactivity within this group of proteins. Computer searching of protein sequence databases did not detect significant homologies between the bovine lectin sequence and other known proteins.

An antibody dependent cellular cytotoxic (ADCC) reaction was elicited using human mixed lymphocyte cultures against coronavirus 229E-infected C-16 cells. The response was assayed in microtitre plates by radioactive chromium release. Optimal killing of target cells was achieved using cells labelled 22 h after infection. A prozone was present and the optimal dilution of sera was invariably 1:200. The majority (70%) of sera tested gave a positive ADCC response. These included all sera judged positive by ELISA, but also some which were judged negative. Two experiments using purified IgG from serum which was ADCC and ELISA positive suggested that the response is mediated by an IgG antibody and that the prozone is due to a separate serum component.

A schematic method for the derivation of steady-state enzyme rate equations by using the Wang algebra is described. The method is simple, easy to learn and offers a substantial decrease in analytical effort over previously published algorithms. Being essentially an algebraic procedure the method can be readily computerized. Computer programs in BASIC and ALGOL languages have been deposited as Supplementary Publication SUP 50065 (19 pages) at the British Library (Lending Division), Boston Spa, Wetherby, W. Yorkshire LS23 7BQ, U.K., from whom copies can be obtained on the terms indicated in Biochem. J. (1976). 153, 5.