Production and Characterization of Monoclonal Antibodies Specific for Citrus Tristeza Virus and Their Use for Diagnosis

1 Inmunologia y Genetica Aplicada SA (INGENASA), Hermanos Garcia Noblejas 41, 28037 Madrid and 2 Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias (IVIA), Apartado Oficial, Moncada, Valencia, Spain Monoclonal antibodies (MAb) specific for citrus tristeza virus (CTV) were obtained from hybrid cells produced by fusion of a non-secreting myeloma cell line with spleen cells from BALB/c mice immunized with isolate T-308 of CTV. Three MAb were characterized for their immunoglobulin isotype and their titres in cell culture and ascites fluids. Each MAb was conjugated with alkaline phosphatase and used in a double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for CTV. When tested against 23 strains of CTV, each MAb recognized all the strains with uniform reactions and low background. Keywords: CTV, monoclonal antibodies, diagnosis Received 23 April 1985; accepted 30 September 1985.