Monoclonal antibodies are antibodies that have affinity for the same antigen. They are produced by one specific type of immune cells that are all clones of the same parent cell, so they are all identical. It is possible to manufacture monoclonal antibodies which bind to any specific substance and then serve to purify or detect that substance.
Recommended Resources
Immunotherapy for Cancer: Monoclonal Antibodies
Delves into the development of monoclonal antibodies, the mechanism of their actions, obstacles to successful therapy.
http://www.meds.com/immunotherapy/monoclonal_antibodies.html
Discusses the body’s ability to make antibodies and the value of those antibodies. Also talks about some of the monoclonal antibodies that have been introduced into human medicine and the problems with monoclonal therapy.
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/M/Monoclonals.html
Monoclonal Antibody Technology: The Basics
Addresses the topic of biotechnology known as monoclonal antibody technology how they work, and contains graphics which depict the production of them.
http://www.accessexcellence.org/RC/AB/IE/Monoclonal_Antibody.php
Journal of the American Society of Nephrology article presents this review of new drugs which includes background information, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics.
http://jasn.asnjournals.org/cgi/content/full/10/6/1366
