A NOVEL MONOCLONAL-ANTIBODY SPECIFICALLY REACTIVE WITH HUMAN T-LYMPHOTROPIC VIRUS TYPE-II (HTLV-II) ENVELOPE PROTEIN

A novel monoclonal antibody (MAb), NS.4.4, specifically reactive with human T-lymphotropic virus type-II (HTLV-II) envelope glycoprotein (gp ) has been developed through immunization with a synthetic peptide cor responding to the amino acid sequence 171-196 of the HTLV-II envelope protein (II-env 171-196). This MAb, which belonged to the IgG, kappa s ubclass, reacted with the cytosmears of HTLV-II-infected cell lines (S i-IIA, CR-IIA-I and AS-IIA), but not with those of HTLV-I-infected cel l lines (MT-I and MT-2) or other HTLV-uninfected cell lines. On Wester n blot analysis, this MAb reacted with gp46 of HTLV-II lysates but not with HTLV-I lysates. Moreover, flow-cytometric analysis revealed that this MAb recognized the native surface of only the HTLV-II-producing cells. Through application to immunohistochemical or serological metho d, this MAb may be of value in elucidating the pathogenesis of HTLV-II infection in comparison with HTLV-I. (C) 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.