The effect of limited proteolysis by trypsin and chymotrypsin on bovine colostral IgG1.

Limited proteolysis of bovine colostral IgG1 by trypsin caused loss of specific antibody activity but column chromatography showed that relatively little cleavage into fragements had occurred. Polyacrlamide-agarose SDS electrophoresis of the 2-mercaptoethanol-treated digest revealed, however, that extensive cleavage of light chains had occurred even though most of the material before reduction had a mol. wt close to that of undigested IgG1. Although a Fab-type fragment was detected in the digest by immunoelectrophoresis it appeared to be only a minor component. Chymotrypsin had little effect upon either the structure or antibody activity of IgG1. These findings may explain the effect of trypsin and chymotrypsin on the bactericidal activity of colostral antibodies.