IgM antibody to a tumor-associated antigen (AG-4) induced by herpes simplex virus type 2: its use in location of the antigen in infected cells.

Rate-zonal centrifugation was used to separate 7S and 19S lg's from sera of patients with cervical cancer and of controls. The lg's were assayed for their ability to recognize AG-4, a tumor-associated antigen, and herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV-2) by various serologic assays including neutralization, immunofluorescence, and complement fixation. These studies indicated that antibody to AG-4 is a macroglobulin; antibody-fixing complement with HSV-2 is a 7S lg. The results of various serologic assays did not show absolute correlation; various tests preferentially identified some antigen-antibody reactions. We obtained evidence that AG-4 is the cytoplasm and is probably on the cell surface.