Characterization of the ETSA-21 antigen, a glycosylphosphatidyl-inositol anchor glycoprotein identified in breast cancer cells using monoclonal antibody B21.

Mab B21 is a monoclonal antibody (Mab) that recognizes an epithelial tumor surface antigen (ETSA-B21) from diverse human tumor cell lines including breast, ovary, uterus, and their cognate carcinoma tissues. A lower reactivity has been observed in normal breast tissue and benign hyperplesia. In this study, the characteristics of the ETSA-B21 antigen have been examined in greater detail in the MCF-7, SK-BR-3, and MDA-MB-453 breast cancer cell lines. Treatment with phosphatidylinositol-phospholipase C, but no neuraminidase were found to partially remove the ETSA-B21 signal from the cell surface as revealed by immunofluorescence microscopy. Inhibition of the N-glycosylation pathway by tunicamycin resulted in a decreased ETSA-B21 signal on the cell membrane. In addition, the antigen-antibody complex was internalized in breast cancer cells as demonstrated by an acidic was internalization assay evaluated using immunofluorescence. In conclusion, this study suggests that ETSA-B21 is a GPI anchor N-glycosylated protein promoting specific antibody internalization in breast cancer cells.