Specific and sensitive radioimmunoassay for 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylethyleneglycol (MOPEG)

Antibodies that specifically bind the norepinephrine metabolite 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylethyleneglycol (MOPEG) were produced in rabbits after injection of a derivative of MOPEG conjugated with bovine thyroglobulin. A sensitive radioimmunoassay was devised with this antiserum, in which as little as 0.5 nanogram of MOPEG can be accurately measured with a final antibody dilution of 1:180. The antibody appears to be specific for MOPEG, since tritiated MOPEG was not displaced from the antibodies by norepinephrine, epinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, or their major metabolites including MOPEG-sulfate (333 nanograms each).