PRODUCTION OF MONOCLONAL ANTI-MALLORY BODY ANTIBODY

Abstract

To elucidate the nature of the non-keratin component of Mallory bodies (MBs), monoclonal anti-Mallory body antibody, anti-NMB-3, was prepared using cell fusion technique. Anti-NMB-3 reacted with MBs in the liver but not with intermediate filaments (IFs) of normal human liver or skin. Anti-NMB-3 reacted with MBs of alcoholic hepatitis, Wilson's disease, primary biliary cirrhosis, fatty liver of diabetes mellitus, hepatocellular carcinoma, and griseofulvin-treated mice under immunofluorescence microscopy. In western blotting, anti-NMB-3 reacted with the bands of molecular weight (MW) 42 and 70-92 kd of MBs separated by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, while polyclonal anti-keratin antibody reacted with the bands of MW 45, 55, 62, and 66 kd. These results indicate that anti-NMB-3 reacts with a non-keratin component of MBs. Anti-NMB-3 may be useful for the study of the nature of MBs, and immunofluorescence microscopy with anti-NMB-3 may be a good tool for detecting MBs in liver specimens.