Monoclonal antibody against the bee parasite Nosema ceranae.

Universidad CEU San Pablo and the Regional Institute of Agro-food and Forestry Research and Development of Castilla-La Mancha (IRIAF) have collaborated on this project. Both institutions seek to promote research activity and transfer the results obtained therefrom to society.

Innovation in diagnosis of animal pathologies

  • Monoclonal antibody NosCer74 for use in a method of diagnosis of nosemosis caused by the parasite Nosema ceranae. Nosemosis is a serious pathology affecting honeybees. Nosemosis caused by N. ceranae in occidental and European bees (Apis mellifera) leads to progressive weakening of the colony and, in the most serious cases, colony collapse.

Additional information

  • Monoclonal antibody NosCer74 specifically recognises an exospore cell wall protein of the microsporidium N. ceranae. The method of diagnosis can be implemented with diverse techniques, such as immunofluorescence, immunohistochemistry, immunochromatography, immunoelectrotransfer, ELISA and microarrays.
  • The research group is a Spanish national reference laboratory for the diagnosis of human microsporidiosis, and additionally holds two patents protecting monoclonal antibodies for the diagnosis of pathologies produced by microsporidia.

Patents

Spanish patent application

The Spanish patent application has been filed and is being prosecuted by the firm Manuel Illescas y Asociados, S.L.U.

The Spanish patent application has not yet been published and is within the priority year which expires on 29/07/2020. Protection may be extended to other jurisdictions before said due date by filing, for example, an international patent application claiming priority from this Spanish patent application.

The patent application is directed to the monoclonal antibody NosCer74, the hydridoma producing said antibody, and the use of said antibody for detecting spores of N. ceranae, as well as a method of diagnosis of nosemosis caused by N. ceranae in honeybees based on said antibody, and kits for carrying out said method of diagnosis of nosemosis.