Glomerulonephritis induced by pre-formed immune complexes containing monoclonal antibodies of defined affinity and isotype

Abstract

The work presented here represents the first report of the induction of experimental immune complex (IC) disease in mice using monoclonal antibodies (MoAb) derived from somatic cell hybridization. IC were formed using two antigens of either high (DNP19BSA) or low (DNP4BSA) epitope density and five MoAb (four IgG1 with varying affinities for the dinitrophenol hapten and one IgM with a similar affinity to that of the lowest affinity IgG1). Circulating levels and sizes of IC were dependent on the affinity of the antibody component of the complex. When antigen of high epitope density was used, the glomerular localization of injected IC was diffuse mesangial for the IgM antibody, focal mesangial ..