Generation of murine monoclonal antibodies with specificity against conventional camelid IgG1 and heavy-chain only IgG2/3

•Secondary monoclonal antibodies specific to camelid Ig were generated and characterized.•Monoclonal antibodies specific for whole camelid Ig, conventional IgG1 and heavy chain only camelid IgG2/3 were generated.•A sandwich ELISA system was build for the specific discrimination of conventional and heavy chain only immunoglobulin.•The antibodies were used to investigate the specific antibody response after vaccination and infection. Camelids possess antibodies with a conventional four-chain structure consisting of two heavy and two light chains (of subclass IgG1) but further they also generate heavy-chain only antibodies (of subclass IgG2 and 3) which are fully functional in antigen binding. In this study subclass-specific murine monoclonal antibodies specific to conventional camelid IgG1 and heavy-chain only IgG2/3 were generated and validated for the use as potent secondary detection reagents. The monoclonal antibodies are able to differentiate between all camelid IgGs, conventional four-chain camelid antibodies (of subclass IgG1) and exclusively heavy chain-only antibodies (of subclasses IgG2 and IgG3). Further these antibodies were used to detect specific immune responses after vaccination of Camelids against bovine corona- and rotavirus strains and different E.coli and Clostridia – antigens and to identify Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae infected animals within a herd. The described antibodies are suitable as new secondary agents for the detection of different camelid subclasses and the validation of camelid immune reactions.