Production of anti-idiotypic antibodies by immunization with a pair of complementary peptides

✍ Scribed by Kenneth L. Bost; J. Edwin Blalock

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1989
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 577 KB
• Volume: 1
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0952-3499
• DOI: 10.1002/jmr.300010406

✦ Synopsis

Previous investigations have suggested that pairs of peptides specified by complementary RNA sequences (termed complementary peptides) can interact with one another. In the light of this finding, we hypothesized that an antibody directed against a peptide might interact with an antibody against its complementary peptide at the antigen combining site. To address this possibility, polyclonal antibodies against a peptide, Leu-Glu-Arg-Ile-Leu-Leu (LERILL), and its complementary peptide, Glu-Leu-Cys-Asp-Asp-Asp (ELCDDD), were made monospecific by affinity chromatography. Using radioimmunoassays, anti-ELCDDD antibodies were shown to interact with lZSI-anti-LERILL antibodies but not with 1251-control antibodies. More importantly, the interaction of the two antibodies could be blocked using either peptide antigen, but not with control peptides. Furthermore, Iz5I-anti-LERILL binding to LERILL could be blocked with anti-ELCDDD antibody and vice versa. We concluded therefore that antibody/antibody binding occurred at or near the antigen combining site, demonstrating that this interaction was an idiotypic/anti-idiotypic one. ~~~ '0 Heyden & Son Limited, 1989