Monoclonal antibodies against the G1 and nucleocapsid proteins of LaCrosse and Tahyna viruses.

Monoclonal antibodies against the Gl (glycoprotein) and Nc (nucleocapsid) proteins of LaCrosse (LAC) and Tahyna (TAH) viruses were generated using a standard protocol. Monoclonal antibodies against Gl were either neutralizing or non-neutralizing, and there was close concordance between inhibition of hemagglutination and neutralizing activities. The LAC virus neutralizing antibodies could be further subdivided into strain-specific and cross-reactive groups on the basis of both neutralization and inhibition of hemagglutination. These data support the concept of a glycoprotein molecule with three antigenic sites, two involved in neutralization and hemagglutination, and an additional site with no biological function as yet defined. Preliminary information from LAC virus variants selected with these monoclonal antibodies agrees with this interpretation. Anti Nc antibodies were all cross-reactive in an ELISA assay. Patterns of monoclonal cross-reactivity against California serogroup viruses are compared with the currently accepted antigenic relationships.