title: Characterization of monoclonal antibodies against hantavirus nucleocapsid protein and their use for immunohistochemistry on rodent and human samples.
abstract: Monoclonal antibodies are important tools for various applications in hantavirus diagnostics. Recently, we generated Puumala virus (PUUV)-reactive monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) by immunisation of mice with chimeric polyomavirus-derived virus-like particles (VLPs) harbouring the 120-amino-acid-long amino-terminal region of the PUUV nucleocapsid (N) protein. Here, we describe the generation of two mAbs by co-immunisation of mice with hexahistidine-tagged full-length N proteins of Sin Nombre virus (SNV) and Andes virus (ANDV), their characterization by different immunoassays and comparison with the previously generated mAbs raised against a segment of PUUV N protein inserted into VLPs. All of the mAbs reacted strongly in ELISA and western blot tests with the antigens used for immunization and cross-reacted to varying extents with N proteins of other hantaviruses. All mAbs raised against a segment of the PUUV N protein presented on chimeric VLPs and both mAbs raised against the full-length AND/SNV N protein reacted with Vero cells infected with different hantaviruses. The reactivity of mAbs with native viral nucleocapsids was also confirmed by their reactivity in immunohistochemistry assays with kidney tissue specimens from experimentally SNV-infected rodents and human heart tissue specimens from hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome patients. Therefore, the described mAbs represent useful tools for the immunodetection of hantavirus infection.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biotechnology, Vilnius University, V. Graičiūno 8, 02241 Vilnius, Lithuania. indkuc@ibt.lt
authors.forename: Indre
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kucinskaite-Kodze
authors.forename: Rasa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Petraityte-Burneikiene
authors.forename: Aurelija
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zvirbliene
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hjelle
authors.forename: Rafael A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Medina
authors.forename: Alma
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gedvilaite
authors.forename: Ausra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Razanskiene
authors.forename: Jonas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schmidt-Chanasit
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mertens
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Padula
authors.forename: Kestutis
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sasnauskas
authors.forename: Rainer G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Ulrich
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006476:Orthohantavirus / Q000276:immunology*; D018778:Hantavirus Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000821:virology; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000379:methods; D051379:Mice; D019590:Nucleocapsid Proteins / Q000276:immunology*; D029262:Puumala virus / Q000276:immunology; D029261:Sin Nombre virus / Q000276:immunology*; D014709:Vero Cells; D014773:Virology / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D019590:Nucleocapsid Proteins