The effect of pre-injection of mice with pristane on ascites tumour formation and monoclonal antibody production.

Experiments were performed to determine whether for mice pre-injected with pristane (2,6,10,14-tetramethylpentadecane) there is an optimum interval before injection of hybridomas in order to maximize ascites fluid formation and yield of monoclonal antibodies. With injections of 0.5 ml of pristane followed by injections of 5 x 10(5) hybridoma cells making monoclonal antibodies against mammalian carbamyl phosphate synthetase, a pre-injection time of 10 days was optimum with respect to (a) the time taken for the ascites tumours to appear; (b) the percentage of mice developing ascites tumours (all mice developed tumours over a span of 2 days); and (c) the concentration of monoclonal antibodies in ascites fluid: 11 mg/ml compared with 7 mg/ml for the next highest group.