The reaction of monoclonal antibodies with hordeins from five different Hordeum species

Hordeins from H. vulgare, H. murinum, H. pusillum, H. bulbosum, and H. brevisubulatum were probed with five monoclonal antibodies raised against different hordein polypeptides from Hordeum vulgare cv. ‘Bomi’. The response pattern differed widely among species. One of the antibodies, CMpBChorl, was found to react with hordein from every tested species, and all of the antibodies reacted with at least one of the wild barley species. Antibodies reacting with many different hordein polypeptides in ‘Bomi’ showed a wide reaction also with other species, while more specific antibodies gave limited reactions outside of domesticated barley. In some cases hordein polypeptides reacting with a specific antibody differed in electrophoretic mobility between species, indicating that the hordein genes involved have undergone concerted evolution.