The development of mouse monoclonal antibodies that bind and neutralize paraquat.

Mouse hybridomas have been produced that produce antibody that can bind to the bipyridyl herbicide paraquat with high affinity (Ka = 1.2 X 10(10) litres/mole). In addition, one cell line, 321, secretes antibody in the concentration range 60-100 micrograms/ml of culture, and 5 mg/ml in ascites fluid. Such high concentrations make it feasible to produce gram quantities of antibody with relative ease and low cost. The antibody is of class and sub-class IgG1 and can be readily purified by protein A and paraquat specific affinity chromatography. Radioimmunoassays and in vitro neutralization studies have demonstrated that 1 mg of antibody is required to bind 2.5 micrograms of paraquat. When antibody binds to paraquat in vitro it renders the paraquat unavailable for accumulation into rat lung tissue.