Monoclonal neutralizing antibodies against EV71 screened from mice immunized with yeast-produced virus-like particles.

Periodic outbreaks of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) occur in children under 5 years old, and can cause death in some cases. The C4 strain of enterovirus 71 (EV71) is the main pathogen that causes HFMD in China. Although no drugs against EV71 are available, some studies have shown that candidate vaccines or viral capsid proteins can produce anti-EV71 immunity. In this study, female BABL/c mice (6-8 weeks old) were immunized with virus-like particles (VLPs) of EV71 produced in yeast to screen for anti-EV71 antibodies. Two hybridomas that could produce neutralizing antibodies against EV71 were obtained. Both neutralizing mAbs (D4 and G12) were confirmed to bind the VP1 capsid protein of EV71, and could protect >95% cells from 100 TCID50 EV71 infection at 25 µg/mL solution (lowest concentration). Those two neutralizing mAbs identified in the study may be promising candidates in development for mAbs to treat EV71 infection, and utilized as suitable reagents for use in diagnostic tests and biological studies.