Preparation of antibodies directed to the Babesia ovata- or Theileria sergenti-parasitized erythrocytes

To investigate the surface antigens of the bovine red blood cells (RBCs) parasitized by Babesia ovata or Theileria sergenti, attempts were made to produce monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) with BALB/c mice. Comparable numbers of hybridomas producing anti-piroplasm mAbs, as well as anti-bovine RBC mAbs, were obtained from the mice immunized with B. ovata- or T. sergenti-PRBCs. However, mAbs directed to the surface of parasitized RBCs (PRBCs) were obtained only from the mice immunized with B. ovata-PRBCs, but not from those immunized with T. sergenti-PRBCs. When serum samples from the immunized mice and the infected cattle were examined, antibodies recognizing B. ovata-PRBC surface were detected in the sera against B. ovata, but analogous antibodies were undetectable in the sera against T. sergenti, despite that the sera showed substantial antibody titers to T. sergenti piroplasms. The results suggest that significant antigenic modifications occur on the surface of B. ovata-PRBCs, but not on the surface of T. sergenti-PRBCs.