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August 17-18, 2017 | Toronto, Canada
ANNUAL BIOTECHNOLOGY CONGRESS
alliedacademies
Ann Biol Sci, 2017
ISSN: 2348-1927
Monoclonal antibodies are widely used reagents in
biomedical research as well as in clinical applications.
However, tolerogenic and structural constraints limit the
antibody repertoire. In contrast to conventional antibodies,
the recently identified variable lymphocyte receptor (VLR)
antibodies of the evolutionarily distant jawless vertebrates
utilize the β-sheet forming leucine-rich repeat (LRR) as basic
structural unit. We hypothesize that the unique origins and
radicallydistinct proteinarchitecturewill allowVLRantibodies
to bind antigens, which conventional antibodies cannot
readily recognize for tolerogenic or structural constraints.
Memory B cells (Bmem) and plasma cells (PC) are tasked with
providing long lasting humoral protection to re-encountered
pathogens. However, no conventional antibodies exist that
specifically detect these cell populations. In an effort to
identify novel biomarkers uniquely expressed on Bmem
and PC, we developed a method to generate monoclonal
VLR antibodies to cell surface antigens. We isolated panels
of monoclonal VLR antibodies binding specifically to human
Bmem and PC. Flow cytometric analysis of VLR antibody
binding to cell lines and primary human cells from blood,
tonsil, spleen and bone marrow revealed binding patterns
that are inconsistent with those of any conventional antibody,
suggesting that the monoclonal VLR antibodies recognize
novel antigens. Interestingly, we observed greatly increased
VLR antibody binding to memory B cell populations in blood
of individuals diagnosed with the autoimmune disorders
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Multiple Sclerosis
(MS). Our data indicate that monoclonal VLR antibodies hold
promise as novel reagents with a wide range of application
potential in basic and clinical research.
Speaker Biography
Goetz RA Ehrhardt has completed his PhD at the University of British Columbia and
continued his training as Post-doctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Max D Cooper at
Emory University in Atlanta, GA. In 2011, he was recruited to the Department of Immu-
nology at the University of Toronto. His laboratory focuses on mechanisms governing
the regulation of human memory B cell responses and on the use of the non-conven-
tional VLR antibody system of jawless vertebrates for biomarker discovery purposes.
e:
Goetz RA Ehrhardt
University of Toronto, Canada
Biomarker discovery using monoclonal VLR antibodies of the evolutionarily
distinct sea lamprey
Goetz RA Ehrhardt, Ann Biol Sci, 2017, 5:3
DOI: 10.21767/2348-1927-C1-002