title: Generation and characterization of novel monoclonal antibodies to the Ret receptor tyrosine kinase.
abstract: Ret is a tyrosine kinase receptor involved in several human diseases germ-line mutations are responsible for multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 syndromes while somatic mutations of Ret are found in sporadic medullary thyroid carcinomas. In the present work, we describe the generation and characterization of a panel of novel monoclonal antibodies to Ret obtained by immunizing mice with a Ret-FC fusion protein. Fifty-five independent monoclonal antibodies recognize Ret-FC by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay but not a non-related FC fusion protein. Twenty antibodies further characterized recognize Ret expressing cells by flow cytometry. Finally, immunoprecipitation analysis showed that these antibodies recognize Ret mature glycosylated and immature forms. Thus, these monoclonal antibodies could be used as diagnostic tools to detect Ret expression, as well as therapeutic tools to downmodulate Ret or to deliver cytotoxic drugs to malignancies that overexpress Ret as neuroblastomas, medullary and papillary thyroid carcinomas, seminomas, and leukemia.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4264, USA.
authors.forename: Giuliana
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Salvatore
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nagata
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Billaud
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Santoro
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vecchio
authors.forename: Ira
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pastan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006031:Glycosylation; D006801:Humans; D006825:Hybridomas; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism; D011233:Precipitin Tests; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology*; D051096:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-ret; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology*; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D051096:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-ret; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; C416649:Ret protein, Drosophila; C494999:Ret protein, mouse