Mapping of antigenic determinants within peptides of a variant surface glycoprotein of Trypanosoma brucei

The location of antigenic determinants in the primary amino acid sequence of the variant surface glycoprotein of Trypanosoma brucei MITat 1.6 was investigated using monoclonal antibodies in conjunction with the known cyanogen bromide and tryptic cleavage patterns of this antigen. The cyanogen bromide digestion fragments of the antigen were purified and used to raise polyclonal antisera, which were specific for the appropriate cyanogen bromide fragment and partial digestion products, as well as recognising the intact variant surface glycoprotein. Competition radioimmunoassays were carried out between these antisera and nine monoclonal antibodies specific for MITat 1.6 variant surface glycoprotein, which have previously been characterised and shown to recognise five antigenic determinants of which only one is exposed on the surface of the living trypanosome. The binding of the monoclonal antibodies to the major tryptic peptide of MITat 1.6 variant surface glycoprotein was investigated by immunoblotting and by competition radioimmunoassay, and revealed that the five antigenic determinants recognised by the nine monoclonal antibodies are all located in the N-terminal two thirds of the MITat 1.6 variant surface glycoprotein molecule. Three of the determinants are located in an immunodominant region apparently formed by the folding together of two of the cyanogen bromide peptides. The other two determinants appear to be more conformationally labile; one of these is the determinant which is exposed on the surface of the living trypanosome, which is located in the N-terminal one third of the molecule.