AUTO-ANTI-IDIOTYPIC MONOCLONAL ANTIBODIES TO STEROID RECEPTORS AND USES THEREOF

摘要

AUTO-ANTI-IDIOTYPIC MONOCLONAL ANTIBODIES TO RECEPTORS AND USES THEREOF A competitive immunoassay for a steroid receptor has been developed in which monoclonal antibodies capable of binding to the steroid receptor are competitively bound by anti-steroid antibodies capable of binding to the steroid. The presence or amount of monoclonal antibody-anti-steroid antibody complex formed is related to the amount of steroid receptor present in the assayed material. A histochemical assay is also provided for detecting the amount of a steroid-receptor complex in a biological sample. This assay involved (1) adding an amount of steroid to the sample to form a steroid-receptor complex; (2) contacting the complex with a monoclonal antibody capable of binding to the complex; (3) removing any unbound monoclonal antibody; (4) adding a detectably labeled antibody capable of binding to the monoclonal antibody; (5) determining the amount of labeled antibody bound to the monoclonal antibody; and (6) determining the amount of steroid-receptor complex. The invention further provides a method of purifying receptors to a steroid hormone using monoclonal antibodies capable of binding to the receptor, and a method for producing a monoclonal anti-idiotypic antibody capable of binding to a steroid receptor.