The Nuclear Mitotic Apparatus protein (NuMA) is a nuclear protein that plays critical role in the mitosis as an organizer of
the mitotic spindles and is a prevalent protein in malignant urothelial cells which makes it an appropriate marker for bladder
cancer early detection. In this study, NuMA protein sequence was obtained from Genbank based on literature studies. Immunodominant
epitopes which are located between residues 1 and 300 were reverse translated and optimized for expression in
E. coli cells. Final sequence was then synthesized, cloned into pGS21a vector and expressed in BL21 cells. The expressed
protein was examined by SDS-PAGE and also Western blotting to confirm expression by using anti-His an... More
The Nuclear Mitotic Apparatus protein (NuMA) is a nuclear protein that plays critical role in the mitosis as an organizer of
the mitotic spindles and is a prevalent protein in malignant urothelial cells which makes it an appropriate marker for bladder
cancer early detection. In this study, NuMA protein sequence was obtained from Genbank based on literature studies. Immunodominant
epitopes which are located between residues 1 and 300 were reverse translated and optimized for expression in
E. coli cells. Final sequence was then synthesized, cloned into pGS21a vector and expressed in BL21 cells. The expressed
protein was examined by SDS-PAGE and also Western blotting to confirm expression by using anti-His antibody-HRP. The
protein was then purified using nickel chromatography column and 18 mg of purified truncated NuMA was obtained from
1 l of bacterial culture. ELISA was performed to evaluate the reactivity of commercial anti-NuMA antibody towards truncated
protein. Finally, the antigen was injected and polyclonal antibody was produced in rabbits. The immunoglobulins of
antiserum were precipitated by ammonium sulfate and purified by DEAE–Cellulose chromatography column. To evaluate
antibody accuracy, it was tested on HEp-2 cells with permeable nucleus membranes fixed on slides. The antibody detected
NuMA protein in the nuclei of HEp-2 cells, which means it can have diagnostic value in the bladder cancer patients. The
truncated NuMA is a suitable protein as a single multiepitope antigen that further may be used for studies to develop assays
for early diagnosis of bladder cancer.
