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Neutralization of tetanus toxin by distinct monoclonal antibodies binding to multiple epitopes on the toxin molecule

Fifty-seven hybridomas producing antibodies to tetanus toxoid or to the Ibc or B-IIb fragment of the toxin were isolated independently. Competitive inhibition studies demonstrated that monoclonal antibodies from mice immunized with the toxoid bound to at least 20 different epitopes on the toxoid molecule. Similar competitive binding studies revealed eight distinct epitopes on the B-IIb fragment and three to five epitopes on the Ibc fragment of the toxin. Neutralization of toxicity was effected by nine distinct monoclonal antibodies from hybridomas of toxoid-immunized mice and by one monoclonal antibody from B-IIb-immunized mice. Mixtures of two, three, and four different monoclonal antibodies in a variety of combinations exerted a synergistic effect of ca. 200-fold over that observed with individual monoclonal antibodies, indicating that efficient neutralization may involve the simultaneous binding of at least two antibody molecules to different specific regions of the toxin molecule. Only one toxoid-induced monoclonal antibody failed to bind to tetanus toxin. All neutralizing antibodies bound to epitopes on the heavy chain of tetanus toxin. Six of these were directed toward epitopes on the NH2-terminal half, whereas four bound to epitopes on the carboxy-terminal half of the heavy chain. Only one monoclonal antibody bound preferentially to the light chain, but two other monoclonal antibodies appeared to bind to both chains, indicating some homology between these two chains.