IMMUNE REAGENTS FOR RUMINANTS, WITH PRIMARY FOCUS ON BOVINE-SPECIFIC REAGENTS

<b>Project Methods</b><br> The focus is on making mAbs to membrane molecules involved in regulating the immune response. These include mAbs specific for CD83, CD95, CD152, CD154, CD178, CD192, CD195, CD196, CD197, CD273, CD274, CD279, CD223, CD282, CD284, CD366, IL-22, IL-12R, IL-23R.New England Peptides is a company currently being used to make peptide sequences corresponding to conserved sequences on bovine and other ruminant species chemokine receptors involved in immune regulation. They will be used to develop peptides to chemokine receptors listed in the table of the proposal for mAb development. Through collaborative arrangements, Kingfisher Biotech (as mentioned in the proposal) will provide expressed peptides identical to peptide sequences of cell membrane molecules and cytokines involved in regulation of the immune response for development of mAb. In addition, a subsidiary unit of Thermofisher Scientific, Synthetic Biology is being contracted to make bacterial vectors for expressing genes encoding bovine leukocyte membrane molecules for mAb production. The vectors, containing targeted genes encoding membrane molecules, will be used to express the membrane molecules for mAb production. As soon as the mAbs are validated through use and publication, they will be made available through the WSU mAb center http://vmp.vetmed.wsu.edu/resources/monoclonal-antibody-center , Kingfisher Biotech https://www.kingfisherbiotech.com/ , Novus Biologicals https://www.novusbio.com/ and other national and international vendors on request. Novel methods have been developed to facilitate use of the mAbs in study of the immune response ex vivo. The technology will be made available in conjunction with publications describing the new mAbs.