Monoclonal antibodies against chromosomal proteins of Drosophila melanogaster: establishment of antibody producing cell lines and partial characterization of corresponding antigens.

Total nuclear protein from the embryonic D. melanogaster cell line Kc and crude hydroxyapatite fractions thereof were used for immunization of mice. From the spleen cells of these mice we established 755 permanent lymphoid cell lines using the hybridoma technique originally developed by Köhler and Milstein (1975). Radioimmunoassay showed 455 of these cell lines secreted antibodies which bound to component(s) contained in the antigen mixtures used for immunization. Screening of 311 cell lines using indirect immunofluorescence revealed 58 lines whose antibodies showed a highly selective staining pattern on polytene chromosomes from the salivary glands of D. melanogaster third instar larvae. Eight of these cell lines were cloned and further characterized. We were able to order the staining patterns into three distinct classes based on the staining behaviour of the monoclonal antibodies: staining of active regions, staining of phase dark bands or staining of most interbands. The molecular weight of those antigens against which the monoclonal antibodies were directed was determined in SDS polyacrylamide gels.