Monoclonal antibody AP-282 recognizes a marker for human polymorphonuclear granules

Hybridoma AP-282 was produced by fusing mouse plasmacytoma cells with splenocytes of mice immunized against purified human polymorphonuclear cells. The secreted monoclonal antibody (MAb), AP-282, a mouse IgG1, was found to react strongly with all neutrophilic granulocytes, their bone marrow precursors, weakly with blood monocytes and not with eosinophils. The antigen was resistant to formalin fixation but was destroyed by exposure to fixatives containing acetic acid. Using the APAAP technique, antibody AP-282 strongly labelled neutrophils on sections of frozen cut or paraffin embedded tissues. No staining was seen of non hematopoietic tissues. AP-282 recognized an internal antigen associated to cytoplasmic granules. Chemical investigations on dot blots of whole or of purified cellular extracts indicated that the antigen idenfied by MAb AP-282 was different from those recognized by usual antigranulocyte antibodies, i.e. myeloperoxidase, elastase, cathepsin G and lactoferrin. Thus, antibody AP-282 constitutes a new cytoplasmic marker of neutrophils.