Production of monoclonal antibodies specific for human bone gamma-carboxyglutamic acid containing protein.

Murine monoclonal antibodies specific for human bone gamma-carboxyglutamic acid containing protein (BGP) were produced against BGP purified from young adult human long bones. The amino acid composition of purified protein corresponds with that of human BGP, and Western blot analysis revealed that the antibodies reacted most intensely with the cytoplasm of osteoblasts and less intensely with the cytoplasm of osteocytes, but did not react with any other cells, such as chondrocytes, or osteoclasts. Because of their ability to react with routinely processed tissue sections and their marked reactivity with human osteoblastic cells, the antibodies are expected to be a useful tool for studying the process of ossification in human bones and for the immunohistochemical diagnosis of human osteogenic tumours.