Monoclonal antibodies specific for poly(dG) X poly(dC) and poly(dG) X poly(dm5C).

Most duplex DNAs that are in the "B" conformation are not immunogenic. One important exception is poly(dG) X poly(dC), which produces a good immune response even though, by many criteria, it adopts a conventional right-handed helix. In order to investigate what features are being recognized, monoclonal antibodies were prepared against poly(dG) X poly(dC) and the related polymer poly(dG) X poly(dm5C). Jel 72, which is an immunoglobulin G, binds only to poly(dG) X poly(dC), while Jel 68, which is an immunoglobulin M, binds approximately 10-fold more strongly to poly(dG) X poly(dm5C) than to poly(dG) X poly(dC). For both antibodies, no significant interaction could be detected with any other synthetic DNA duplexes including poly[d(Gm5C)] X poly[d(Gm5C)] in both the "B" and "Z" forms, poly[d(Tm5Cm5C)] X poly[d(GGA)], and poly[d(TCC)] X poly[d(GGA)], poly(dI) X poly(dC), or poly(dI) X poly(dm5C). The binding to poly(dG) X poly(dC) was inhibited by ethidium and by disruption of the DNA duplex, confirming that the antibodies were not recognizing single-stranded or multistranded structures. Furthermore, Jel 68 binds significantly to phage XP-12 DNA, which contains only m5C residues and will precipitate this DNA in the absence of a second antibody. The results suggest that (dG)n X (dm5C)n sequences in natural DNA exist in recognizably distinct conformations.