A murine monoclonal antibody (monoclonal antibody 126) produced against cultured human neuroblastoma cells (LAN-1) was found to be specifically directed to a disialoganglioside (G_D2) antigen preferentially expressed on both cell lines and tissues derived from melanoma and neuroblastoma. In enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, monoclonal antibody 126 failed to react with leukemic and lymphoblastoid cells as well as with a variety of carcinoma and sarcoma cell lines. Immunohistological analysis by the immunoperoxidase technique revealed strong reactivity of monoclonal antibody 126 with frozen and formaldehyde-fixed neuroblastoma and melanoma tissues. Tissues from patients with glioma or with small cell cancer of the lung showed faint staining, whereas those from individuals with sarcoma, lymphoma, and a variety of other neoplasms proved to be negative. Sera of neuroblastoma patients showed significantly elevated G_D2 levels compared to normal children (p < 0.001) and children with other tumors (p < 0.001) as determined by a quantitative competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Furthermore, the G_D2 serum level of one neuroblastoma patient, when followed serially, was found to correlate with progression of disease, suggesting the potential usefulness of this assay for the diagnosis and monitoring of neuroblastoma.