Generation of Rat Monoclonal Antibody for Human Nucleolin.

Nucleolin (NCL) is a multifunctional phosphoprotein that is mainly localized in the nucleolus, but it is also found in the nucleoplasm, cytoplasm, and cell membrane. The principal functions of NCL involve DNA and RNA metabolism, gene transcription and translation, ribosome biogenesis, and mRNA stability. It was also reported that the localization of human NCL (hNCL) is related to tumor malignancy.

Establishment of monoclonal antibodies broadly neutralize infection of hepatitis B virus.

Antibodies against hepatitis B virus S protein can protect against hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Therefore, hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG), which contains HBsAb, is used clinically as a therapy for HBV infection. In this study, a series of monoclonal antibodies that recognize multiple HBV genotypes was obtained.

Generation of the Rat Monoclonal Antibody Against the Extracellular Domain of Human CD63 by DNA Immunization.

Human cluster of differentiation 63 (hCD63) is one of the tetraspanin receptors that is abundant on the surface of exosomes. Exosomes are involved in cell-to-cell communication, including from cancer cells to normal cells. It is very important to detect exosomes as a marker for the diagnosis of various diseases.

Glomerulosclerosis Induced by Deficiency of Membrane-Associated Guanylate Kinase Inverted 2 in Kidney Podocytes.

Membrane-associated guanylate kinase inverted 2 (MAGI-2) is a component of the slit diaphragm (SD) of glomerular podocytes. Here, we investigated the podocyte-specific function of MAGI-2 using newly generated podocyte-specific MAGI-2-knockout (MAGI-2-KO) mice. Compared with podocytes from wild-type mice, podocytes from MAGI-2-KO mice exhibited SD disruption, morphologic abnormalities of foot processes, and podocyte apoptosis leading to podocyte loss.

MAGI-2 is critical for the formation and maintenance of the glomerular filtration barrier in mouse kidney.

Membrane-associated guanylate kinase inverted 2 (MAGI-2) is a tight junction protein in epithelial tissues. We previously reported the detailed expression patterns of MAGI-2 in mouse tissues, including kidney podocytes, based on results obtained from Venus knock-in mice for Magi2 locus. In the present study, homozygous deletion of the Magi2 gene in mice caused neonatal lethality, which was explained by podocyte morphological abnormalities and anuria.

Generation of Venus reporter knock-in mice revealed MAGI-2 expression patterns in adult mice.

The membrane-associated guanylate kinase inverted 2 (MAGI-2) protein, which is known to localize at the tight junction of epithelial cells, contains multiple copies of the PDZ and WW domains in its structure. Although the expression pattern of Magi2 mRNA in representative organs has been previously published, its detailed cellular distribution at the histological level remains unknown. Such detailed information would be useful to clarify the biological function of MAGI-2.