A Refined Protocol for Identifying Citrulline-specific Monoclonal Antibodies from Single Human B Cells from Rheumatoid Arthritis Patient Material

We describe here a detailed, refined protocol for the generation of citrulline-specific monoclonal antibodies from single human B cells from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. This protocol provides a detailed guide of the procedure starting from single B cells of your choice and followed by amplification of the variable region of immunoglobulin genes by RT-PCR, subsequent immunoglobulin gene cloning, recombinant IgG1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) production and quality controls. The produced mAbs can be used for further studies including reactivity towards candidate antigens and functionality both in vitro and in vivo. This protocol can be used to generate antigen-specific mAbs from B cells derived from different tissues and compartments, including peripheral blood, synovial fluid, digested biopsies, bone marrow aspirations, and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Notably, although examples are given on how to identify citrulline-specific autoantibodies the general methods can also be applied to other reactivities.