Generation and selection of monoclonal antibodies identifying surface molecules discriminating between fetal and adult fibroblasts.

The present report describes the reactivity of two murine monoclonal antibodies, i.e., CB11 and CB43, the first obtained by using embryonic material as immunizer and the second elicited against a human cell line. These reagents recognize two distinct molecules marking a peculiar differentiation stage on fetal/embryonic fibroblasts. The first structure is a single chain of 14.5 kd, the second one a heterodimer of 40-80 kd. Even if these reagents are not strictly fibroblast restricted, translineage expression does not diminish the medical relevance of the reagents; in fact, they may have application in prenatal diagnostics and amniocentesis testing, in which it is necessary to discriminate between fetal and maternal cells.