Preparation, Characterization, and Use of Monoclonal Antibodies to Vitamin B6

Monoclonal antibodies exhibiting various specificities for B6 vitamer forms have been prepared. The antigen preparation employed was a partially purified mixture of human placental proteins that had been derivatized by reaction with pyridoxal 5'-phosphate and sodium borohydride. Spleen cells obtained from mice immunized with the phosphopyridoxyl protein preparation were fused with the mouse myeloma cell line designated X63-Ag8.653. The resulting hybridomas were screened for production of antibodies to the haptenic phosphopyridoxyl group using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Clones producing such antibodies were isolated by limiting dilution methods. The monoclonal antibodies obtained in this fashion have been characterized with respect to their ability to interact with various forms of vitamin B6. In addition, these antibodies have been shown to be useful in the detection of cellular pyridoxal phosphate binding components using immunoblot techniques. Monoclonal antibodies to vitamin B6 derivatives are potentially powerful tools in the assessment of vitamin B6 nutritional status and in the study of the roles of pyridoxal phosphate binding components in relation to growth, differentiation, carcinogenesis, and steroid hormone action.