A Novel and Efficient Approach for Screening Cancer Cell Specific Monoclonal Antibodies

Cancer cell specific antibodies are pivotal tools in developing new immunotherapies for treating cancers. However, acquirement of cancer cell specific antibodies is time-consuming and often arduous. To circumvent such a barrier, we developed a novel antibody-screening method that can be used to efficiently produce cancer cell specific antibodies by an antibody filter mechanism. First, we used normal human cells to perform the immunization in mice and collected the antisera. Second, we used human cancer cells together with the antisera against normal human cells to immunize another batch of mice. Theoretically, the antisera were able to neutralize the antigens from normal human cells, and therefore specific antigens only expressed in cancer cells could take advantage of the immunization. Third, we screened positive clones that are specific for cancer cells but not normal cells. Using this conceptual method, we successfully obtained 11 monoclonal antibodies that are specific for a human liver cancer cells line (HepG2) but not for a normal human liver cell line (HH). In addition, these clones failed to recognize other human cancer cells originated from different tissues, further highlighting the specificity. Collectively, we provide a novel and effective approach for screening cancer cell specific monoclonal antibodies, which may significantly facilitate the development of new anti-cancer therapeutics.