Immunoblotting with polyclonal and monoclonal antibody to avian myeloblastosis protein p27: studies of liver proteins in chickens with erythroblastosis.

An antigen detected by complement fixation with polyclonal antibody to avian myeloblastosis virus (AMV) antigen p27, appears in the livers of chickens inoculated with avian erythroblastosis virus (AEV). It can be demonstrated at the 30,000 dalton (30K) molecular weight level by Western immunoblotting of electropherograms of AEV infected liver extracts. The 30K protein reacted strongly with this polyclonal antibody but only weakly with a monoclonal antibody to the same viral antigen and possible explanations for this have been suggested. Both antibodies also appeared to react with other than viral components in the preparations of AMV used. As this apparent non-specific attachment of highly specific antibody may have as its explanation the failure of the gelatin to prevent nonimmunologically determined binding of the immunoglobulin; other blocking agents should be investigated.