RECOMBINANT BLOOD-GROUP ANTIGENS ARE USEFUL FOR STUDYING THE FINE SPECIFICITY OF ANTIBODIES AGAINST GLYCOPHORIN-A ENCODED ANTIGENS

Recombinant wild-type and variant forms of glycophorin A (GPA) were ex pressed in wild-type and glycosylation-defective Chinese hamster ovary cells. The binding to recombinant GPA of antibodies submitted to the Third International Workshop was assessed by immunoprecipitation and i ndirect immunofluorescence. This is a powerful approach for determinin g the fine specificity of antibodies to blood group antigens. The adva ntages and limitations of this approach are discussed.