Anti-JOVI.1 antibody to detect clonal T cell populations: implementation into a diagnostic flow cytometry laboratory and correlation with clinical findings

Abstract

AbstractThe development of a high through-put flow cytometric assay for the identification of clonal T cells has proved challenging. We assessed the surface expression of a specific T Cell Receptor β-chain constant region using conjugated anti-JOV1.1 monoclonal antibodies to identify clonal T cell populations in a large diagnostic flow cytometry laboratory within a quaternary referral hospital. 37 cases were analysed. We identified 15 cases of clonal JOVI.1 expression, 7 of which had a consensus diagnosis of T-cell lymphoproliferative disease (TLPD). The remaining 22 cases had polyclonal JOVI.1 expression, none of which had a consensus diagnosis of TLPD, resulting in a sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 73%. When clonal NK-T cells were excluded, specificity further improves to 97%. These results provide real-world data and support the widespread adoption of this assay into diagnostic use.