Assessment of neuromedin B polyclonal antibodies as molecular probes in neural tissue.

Five unique, high affinity rabbit polyclonal antibodies against neuromedin B were characterized in a radioimmunoassay in terms of the following parameters: pH and type of buffer, ionic strength, and non-ionic detergents in order to optimize immunoglobulin-peptide interaction; specificity using peptides of the bombesin family, in addition to the tachykinin substance P; and affinity to neuromedin B. Optimum conditions included acidic pH (5.25), high ionic strength (greater than 0.1 M) and absence of non-ionic detergents, which inhibited the assay. Affinities for the 5 antibodies ranged from 10 to 48 fmol neuromedin B with titers from 1:1,000 to 1:10,000 and the sequence-specificity covered the entire peptide; cross-reactivity towards substance P was negligible. As a model tissue, rat spinal cord was homogenized with 5 different extraction solvents, including acetone, methanol, acid and alkaline conditions, and assayed by each polyclonal antiserum; neuromedin B immunoreactivity levels were highest in acid and alkaline extracts and reflected the specificity of the antibody used. Applying these antisera to rat brain extracts, the posterior pituitary gland contained the highest concentration of immunoreactive equivalents of neuromedin B followed by the anterior pituitary, hypothalamus, and hippocampus. The immunoreactive content in the pituitary and hypothalamus, however, depended on the particular antisera used with significant (P less than 0.01) differences existing between them. Further application of these polyclonal antibodies to a spinal cord extract analyzed by isocratic reverse-phase HPLC conditions also revealed differences in their cross-reactivity with the immunoreactive peptides. These antisera may now be used as molecular probes for the determination of extractable immunoreactive neuromedin B from neural tissue and in situ localization by immunohistochemical techniques.