Anticorpos monoclonais contra receptor HER2: produção, caracterização e avaliação para uso em testes diagnósticos de tumores de mama humano e canino

Abstract

Malignant neoplasms such as breast cancer deserve attention for its high prevalence and great demand of financial resources, representing a major problem of public health all over the world. In Brazil, mortality rates from breast cancer remain high, most likely because the disease is diagnosed in advanced stages. Tumor markers can be useful in diagnosis, staging and in the evaluations of therapeutic responsiveness and disease prognostic. The overexpression of the oncogene Human Epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), a prognostic tumor marker in breast cancer, is observed in 20-30% of breast cancers in humans and canines. In this context, this study reports the development of new murine monoclonal antibodies from a recombinant protein corresponding to the extracellular portion of the HER2 receptor for use in immunohistochemistry (IHC) and in the development of other immunoassays. These antibodies were produced, characterized and tested subsequently in histological sections of human and canine breast tumors. Among five hybridomas produced, two demonstrated potential for use in immunohistochemistry of these two tumors.