Immunohistochemical analysis of human adenocarcinoma-associated antigen YH206 detected by a monoclonal antibody.

A monoclonal antibody YH206 (IgM, kappa) was prepared using human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cell line as an immunogen. The histological distribution of antigenic determinant of the YH206 antigen was highly restricted to adenocarcinomas of various organs including the lung, the pancreas and the stomach, but it did not react with 10 cases of colonic adenocarcinomas by the immunoperoxidase technique. It did not stain non-cancerous tissues of 16 different organs, except for the renal tubules and for the secreting glands of the pancreas with which the antibody faintly reacts. It did not react with either granulocytes, lymphocytes or red blood cells. Positive staining was observed in various fetal tissues. Periodic acid and neuraminidase treatments on tissue sections suggested that the chemical nature of the antigenic determinant of YH206 antigen was carbohydrate in nature which might be masked by sialic acids.