Actin antibody: the specific visualization of actin filaments in non-muscle cells

Actin purified from mouse fibroblasts by sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis was used as antigen to obtain an antibody in rabbits. The elicited antibody was shown to be specific for actin as judged by immunodiffusion and complement fixation against partially purified mouse fibroblast actin and highly purified chicken muscle actin. The antibody was used in indirect immunofluorescence to demonstrate by fluorescence light microscopy the distribution and pattern of actin-containing filaments in a variety of cell types. Actin filaments were shown to span the cell length or to concentrate in "focal points" in patterns characteristic for each individual cell.