Monoclonal antibodies raised to human cells — specificity for pig leukocytes

A total of 27 monoclonal antibodies raised to human targets were included in the present Pig CD workshop. 14 of these had been tested in previous workshops and had been reported as cross-reactive, a further 13 had been reported as cross-reactive during the Human Leukocyte Differentiation Antigens Workshop VI (HLDA VI) and/or by the donor (a commercial company submitting these mAb for validation by the workshop community). Of the 27 antibodies, three antibodies with previously reported reactivity for pig cells were eliminated from the workshop following preliminary tests due to lack of reactivity. Nine antibodies, although initially positive, gave inconsistent results during the course of the workshop. We found consistent reactivity for 15 antibodies. However, the cellular distribution of the target molecules on pig and human cells was shown to be different for three of these antibodies. These findings have important implications for the usefulness of these antibodies as research tools in the pig.