X-ray analysis at 3.2-A resolution revealed that the Mcg IgG1 (lambda chain) immunoglobulin is a compact T-shaped molecule. Because of the hinge deletion, the Fc fragment lobe is pulled tightly upward into the junction of the Fab arms. Along the molecular twofold axis, the Fab arms are joined by an interchain disulfide bond between the two light chains. The antigen combining sites consist of la...

BACKGROUND Quantitative, miniaturized nucleic acid assays and immunoassays can be developed with single microparticles, microfluorometric detection, and intrinsically fluorescent lanthanide chelates in a multiple assay format to decrease reagent consumption, cost, and assay time. We used recombinant Fab fragments to capture and detect free and total prostate-specific antigen (PSA) from serum in...

BACKGROUND Members of the Parvovirus genus cause a variety of diseases in mammals, including humans. One of the major defences against viral infection is the presence of neutralizing antibodies that prevent virus particles from infecting target cells. The mechanism of neutralization is not well understood. We therefore studied the structure of canine parvovirus (CPV) complexed with the Fab frag...

Pre-resonance Raman spectroscopy was used to study the interactions of the nitro groups of dinitrophenyl haptens with three dinitrophenyl-binding antibody fragments: M315 Fv, M460 Fab' and X25 Fab'. The observed changes in frequency of modes associated with the nitro moieties are compared with solvent-induced changes for the model hapten 2,4-dinitroaniline. These comparisons demonstrate a speci...

Many tumors over-express collagen, which constitutes the physical scaffold of tumor microenvironment. Collagen has been considered to be a target for cancer therapy. The collagen-binding domain (CBD) is a short peptide, which could bind to collagen and achieve the sustained release of CBD-fused proteins in collagen scaffold. Here, a collagen-binding EGFR antibody fragment was designed and expre...

We report on the preparation, crystallization, and preliminary x-ray crystallographic study of Fab fragments from monoclonal anti-p-azophenylarsonate antibodies. Several crystalline forms were obtained with the Fab fragment from the R19.9 monoclonal antibody as well as with the complex between the hapten p-aminobenzenearsonic acid and Fab R19.9. The crystals of this hapten-Fab complex are simil...

A combinatorial library was used to select a human monoclonal antibody fragment (Fab) with high affinity for G glycoprotein in herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). Tests with 112 clinical specimens demonstrated successful discrimination between HSV-2 and HSV-1, showing the potential of Fab as a low-cost tool for HSV subtyping in clinical diagnosis.

A novel phagemid vector, named pCM, was optimized for the cloning and display of antibody fragment (Fab) libraries on the surface of filamentous phage. This vector contains two long DNA "stuffer" fragments for easier differentiation of the correctly cut forms of the vector. Moreover, in pCM the fragment at the heavy-chain cloning site contains an acid phosphatase-encoding gene allowing an easy ...