Expression of YBB 3/10 antigen in human tumor colon cell lines and its induction by N,N-dimethylformamide.

A monoclonal antibody (YBB 3/10) raised against rat small intestinal brush border membranes defined a high-molecular-weight antigen present on the surface membrane of the epithelial cells in fetal and newborn rat small intestine but appeared specific for the undifferentiated crypt cells in adult rat small intestine. In rat colon and rectum, expression of the YBB 3/10 antigen was limited to a specific period of development, from day 17 to 18 of gestation in the fetus to the first few days after birth. This antigen was detected in 11 of 12 human tumor intestinal cell lines. By immunofluorescent staining, it was found present only in subsets of the cultured tumor cells appearing as colonies of variable size. In contrast, it could not be detected in a large panel of normal rat and human cell lines. Expression of the YBB 3/10 antigen could be induced in the only negative colon tumor cell line (DLD-1 cells) by treatment with N,N-dimethylformamide (CAS: 68-12-2). These results suggested that the YBB 3/10 antigen represented a marker for the differentiated state of human colon tumor cells and that it would be useful to investigate the relationship between the state of cell differentiation and the pattern of development of small and large intestine during fetal and postnatal life.