Human T lymphocytes and hematopoietic cell lines express CD24-associated carbohydrate epitopes in the absence of CD24 mRNA or protein.

The CD24 surface antigen is a small glycophosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored glycoprotein found on human granulocytes and most B lymphocytes. Many CD24 monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) have been described that identify several epitopes, with the majority of them related to carbohydrate structures associated with the CD24 molecule. Considerable variation has been observed in the apparent tissue distribution of the CD24 antigen depending on the MoAb used, and hence the CD24 epitope studied. In this study, CD24 expression by human cell lines and normal hematopoietic call populations was assessed using a panel of carbohydrate and protein core-specific CD24 MoAbs and reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis. A number of CD24 carbohydrate epitope-reactive MoAbs bound to both T lymphocytes and several hematopoietic cell lines, despite the absence of concomitant CD24 mRNA or detectable surface CD24 core protein in the same cells. This additional CD24 MoAb reactivity on T lymphocytes was, in common with that observed on granulocytes (CD24 protein+), specifically inhibited by the presence of both sialyllactose and mucin. Similarly, the binding of carbohydrate epitops-reactive CD24 MoAb was reduced on both T lymphocytes and granulocytes by pretreatment with phospholipase C, pronase, or neuraminidase. Together, the data indicate that a number of CD24-associated carbohydrate epitopes have a broader tissue distribution than the CD24 protein and are expressed on additional GPI-linked molecule(s). These findings have immediate implications for both leukemia phenotyping and attempts to examine CD24 function with CD24 MoAb.