Production and growth of hybridomas secreting monoclonal antibodies to human thyroid stimulating hormone.

Female Balb/c mice were immunized with human thyroid stimulating hormone (hTSH). The spleen cells of responding mice were used in a cell fusion with NS1 mouse myeloma cells to define 27 stable anti-hTSH hybridomas. The antibody-secreting cell lines, designated SY/T8/1-6, were characterized and three were found to be completely specific for h-TSH while the other three showed some cross reactivity with LH and hCG. Six of the monoclonal antibodies have been well characterized and their parent hybridomas isolated and banked at -196 degrees C for future studies. The hybridomas have been raised from liquid nitrogen and recultured in RPMI 1640 medium. Progress is being made in the investigation of the growth characteristics of these hybridoma cell lines.