Production and evaluation of syngeneic antibodies showing specificity for the A15 A5 transplantable rat glioma.

Antibodies have been raised which show specificity for the A15 A5 transplantable rat glioma model. Viable, irradiated, colcemid-treated and microwave-fixed A15 A5 cells were each used to hyperimmunize BDIX rats by subcutaneous inoculation, while viable cells were also injected intracerebrally into syngeneic animals. Specific anti-A15 A5 antibodies were detected in serum by a modified enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA). Immunoperoxidase and immunofluorescence cytochemistry revealed the presence of antigen in paraffin-wax and frozen sections, respectively, of A15 A5 gliomas. The different methods of immunogen denaturation were found to affect the degree of immunological potency of the cells. This study has shown that A15 A5 cells are immunogenic in a syngeneic host. Intracerebrally transplanted, viable cells produced antibodies of higher titre than subcutaneously-injected, denatured cells. The anti-A15 A5 antisera may be used for detection of neoplastic rat astrocytes using immunocytochemistry. These antibodies will prove to be of value in discriminating between neoplastic and normal cells at the tumor/brain interface.