Original Articles Analysis of P-Glycoprotein-Mediated Membrane Transport in Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes Using the UIC2 Shift Assay

During transport-associated adenosinetriphosphate hydrolysis, P-glycoprotein (Pgp) undergoesconformation transitions detected by UIC2, a functionalanti-Pgp monoclonal antibody. A newly developed UIC2shift assay is based on increased UIC2 reactivity in thepresence of Pgp substrates. All peripheral blood leuko-cytes express low Pgp levels. The existing antibody-baseddetection methods are limited in their sensitivity and re-quire additional techniques to simultaneously analyze Pgpexpression and efflux, making it difficult to ascertain thephysiologic role of Pgp-mediated transport.