We studied carbohydrate specificity and isotypes of antibodies to BSA-conjugated tetrasaccharide, a repeating unit of the capsular polysaccharide of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 14, in mouse polyclonal sera and hybridoma-synthesized products. Natural IgM antibodies to the tetrasaccharide containing epitopes similar to surface carbohydrate structures of mammalian and human cells in low titers were determined in native mouse serum by ELISA using biotinylated tetrasaccharide and synthetic capsular polysaccharide as the solid-phase antigens. Polyclonal sera to the conjugated tetrasaccharide contained IgM and all subclasses of IgG antibodies, which were detected in a higher titer when the biotinylated tetrasaccharide was used as a solid phase antigen compared to synthetic capsular polysaccharide. Monoclonal antibodies to S. pneumoniae serotype 14 tetrasaccharide were identified in an equivalent titer using either biotinylated tetrasaccharide or synthetic capsular polysaccharide. Monoclonal antibodies obtained in vitro belonged to IgM isotype and cross-reacted with secondary full-size IgG antibodies. In the serum of mice inoculated with hybridoma, IgM and IgG2a antibodies recognizing the tetrasaccharide epitope in the structure of synthetic capsular polysaccharide were simultaneously determined.
Keywords: Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 14; glycoconjugates; monoclonal antibodies; polyclonal antibodies; synthetic tetrasaccharide.