Purification and biochemical characterisation of a novel breast carcinoma associated mucin-like glycoprotein defined by antibody 3E1.2.

A member of the high molecular weight glycoproteins of human milk and breast cancer was isolated from the sera, ascites and breast carcinoma tissue of patients with breast cancer using monoclonal antibody 3E1.2. The 3E1.2 defined antigen, termed mammary serum antigen (MSA) was obtained by immunoaffinity chromatography and a solid phase immuno-precipitation technique (SPIT) from serum of patients with metastatic breast cancer. MSA was found to be a high molecular weight glycoprotein with a Mr greater than 300,000 by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and a native Mr approximately 1 x 10(6) by gel filtration chromatography; in accord with the published Mr of other high molecular weight glycoproteins obtained from human milk and breast cancer. A high degree of glycosylation of MSA molecule was shown by its poor staining with Coomassie blue but good staining in a PAS-silver stain. In addition, MSA contained N-acetyl neuraminic acid and N-acetyl glucosamine as indicated by its binding to wheat-germ agglutinin. The epitope defined by antibody 3E1.2 is sensitive to treatment by sodium periodate and neuraminidase, implying that both carbohydrate and sialic acid are required for binding of antibody 3E1.2. Sandwich immunoassays demonstrated that MSA+ molecules are likely to express repeated 3E1.2 defined epitopes. Furthermore, MSA was susceptible to degradation by pronase, subtilisin and proteinase K and gave a different peptide profile from that of the PAS-O glycoprotein of human milk. MSA+ molecules were found to carry epitopes for a number of other monoclonal antibodies which were reactive with the PAS-O glycoprotein. It is suggested that MSA has the same core protein as is recognised by antibody DF3 which has been used to clone the same cDNA as was cloned with antibodies HMFG-1, HMFG-2 and SM-3. However, the epitope detected by the 3E1.2 antibody is either absent or weakly expressed on human milk, human milk-fat globule membrane (HMFGM) or deglycosylated HMFGM--all of which react strongly with various anti-HMFG antibodies. The antibody 3E1.2 thus recognises a unique epitope of the high molecular weight glycoproteins of human milk and breast cancer, being found in cancer tissue, serum and ascitic fluid of patients with breast cancer but weakly expressed or absent in human milk.